I tend to ramble and write down all the details, leaving them fussily thrown about, in piles and pieces and mess, for you to make sense of. A lot of that is by choice, trying to copycat this or that brilliant writer who has true randomness in her prose, a trait that I fiercely envy. But some of it is just the way this stuff comes out. Editing is tough work, mainly because there is a lot of stuff that,... Read more
My sister delivered a healthy baby boy the day before yesterday. When I called to congratulate her, I asked to be spared from the details. When my wife gave birth to our second son, I was the one about pass out during the epidural. This past November, when I saw the headlines about Savita, I tried to ignore it because I have no stomach for delivery room gore. When I did read the stories a day later, my response was... Read more
It’s been a while since I wrote about not writing. I’ve been trying to break some tics and habits, but this one might be worth holding on to. Periodically I hit something of a wall. For those of you haven’t been reading me for very long, you should know that I don’t believe in writer’s block. I believe in writing when it doesn’t feel good, when inspiration is a deadline or a weird sort of fear that, if you don’t... Read more
No one, I think, wants to read a blog by a Texican all about present-day, US immigration debates. Too predictable, right? Not quite. Although I was born in a bordertown (Brownsville, Texas), I do not come from immigrant ancestors, in the recent immediate sense of the issue. My maternal and paternal Hispanic families pre-date the United States’ aquisition of the southwest. To borrow Gloria Anzaldúa’s expression: the border crossed us, literally. Nonetheless, the issue of immigration strikes me in a... Read more
People got offended by Google’s choice to feature a sketch of Cesar Chavez today, Easter Sunday. I have very little to say that First Things editor, Matthew Schmitz, didn’t cover in his excellent and timely blog post, “Why It’s Fitting to Remember Cesar Chavez on Easter Sunday.” Those who remain unconvinced, should read “The Passion of Cesar Chavez,” published in Crisis Magazine almost a year ago. The lesson is this: if there is an opportunity to proclaim the Gospel, then doing otherwise... Read more
¡Feliz Pascua! Hoy, en los Estados Unidos, también se celebra el día de César Chávez, especialmente en Tejas, Colorado y California. Para algunos, hay un conflicto entre las dos fiestas. Pascua es una fiesta religiosa y el día de Chávez es un festejo secular. Pero este conflicto no tiene razón: Chávez fue un hombre de fe Católica y su vida dio testimonio a la posibilidad y el poder de la gracia divina que puede transformar a la vida cotidiana. La... Read more
Polish Easter Easter Ether Eastern East Feast Feast Feast, Feast Feast Feast Polish Sausage, Aleluja! Read more
Dear Salon Editors and Molly (if I may), I read your article, “My Steubenville,” with great personal interest. Before I get to that, let me clarify one key term for you. The word ‘Steubenville,’ in this case, is like the word ‘bat.’ To bat your eyes at someone is different from swinging a bat or throwing a dead bat at someone. See? The same word actually refers to very different things. I suppose you could bat your eyes while swinging... Read more
Patheos wants to know why I’m Catholic, in 200 words. The most honest answer is this: I don’t know—who really knows why they are who they think they are? I don’t have evidence or arguments, just a hodgepodge of experiences and feelings and thoughts and circumstances and guesses and doubts and fears and beautiful things and love and my family and pain and suffering and stories and fortune and hope. The better, shorter, and even less satisfying one-word answer: Grace.... Read more
Two things. First, Pope Francis’ remarks at today’s audience are simply remarkable and in perfect step with the early weeks of his pontificate. Here is an excerpt: Jesus lived the daily realities of most ordinary people: He was moved by the crowd that seemed like a flock without a shepherd, and He cried in front of the suffering of Martha and Mary on the death of their brother Lazarus; He called a tax collector to be His disciple and also... Read more
Sam Rocha
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