WARNING - STRONG LANGUAGE

The following day, Grams was up early to make breakfast as usual. She prepared coffee, eggs, buttered toast, and beans like always. She called on Liz's door as well as David's, not aware of the argument that had taken place the night before.

"Liz levantate (get up)! Ya es hora de la escuela (it's time for school)," knocked Grams on the door not at all concerned with the tone or manner in which she approached it.

"David, ya es de manana (it's morning), hora de tus medicinas (time for your medicines)," Grams called on him even though he had no schedule to keep. But she was a firm believer of early rise and doing family functions together as much as possible.

She continued to yell out for her kids to get up as she continued her way down the stairs and through her morning routine. Not once missing a beat.

"Liz, David se les esta hacienda tarde (it's getting late)!" Grams said even though she had just called on them.

"Pus que estos no oyen (Well can't they hear me)?" she asked herself.

Truth was they had heard her the first time. Both of them were awake well before Grams had called on either of them. Both laid on their beds dressed to start the day but were hiding from one another. They both had a hard time sleeping, thinking over what had been said and the actions they had decided to take for themselves. They questioned the path each had set.

If they were they the right one? If their lives where headed where they wanted them to be? And if they were, then why were they so apprehensive and so dissatisfied with it? What was that nagging sensation nipping at their souls? If they had made up their minds, than why were thy so difficult to carry on with them? The two minute warning Grams gave them between calls wouldn't be enough time to resolve these pending questions.

Now almost ten minutes since Grams first knocked, she was about to head back up the stairs to knock once more when Liz and David walked down the stairs. Liz came down fist with David following behind her. Neither acknowledging the other on the hallway or on the stairs. The tension between them repulsing like two magnets pushing on each other through an invisible force.

"Bueno y ahora (What's this now)? Que horas son estas de levantarse (What time is this to be getting up)?" asked Grams.

Liz offered no response and went straight to the kitchen.

"Sorry Grams I guess some of this medication really knocks me out," offered David, greeting Grams.

"Dios mio (my God) David, what happened to your cast?" asked Grams noticing the damage on it from its unfortunate encounter with the wall.

"I had an itch on it last night and I had to get it. It was driving me crazy. Don't worry I'll get it fixed up today," said David, becoming more uncomfortable with the amount of covering up he had been doing lately. More reason why he wanted to get back to military life where he didn't have to tiptoe around anyone or anything.

"Quieres que valla con tigo (want me to go with you)?" asked Grams offering her help.

"No, it's ok. I can take care of it on my own," David replied tiring of the invalid treatment and wanting to exercise his independence.

"Hay mijo, tienes que tener mas cuidado (son, you have to be more careful). No puedes serguir lastimandote asi (you can't keep hurting yourself like that)," Grams offered her unsolicited opinion.

Cold stares were shot through the breakfast table, and an uncomfortable silence hovered that was intermittently broken when Grams would attempt small talk with either of her children.

"Bueno, y ahora que les pasa, (Well, what going on between you two)? Paresen gallitos que se quieren comer (You look like fight-cocks ready to kill each other)," Grams asked directly.

"I have to go, I'm late for school," said Liz not finishing her breakfast and walking out.

"Nina ni comistes (Girl, you didn't eat)!" said Grams as Liz left.

"I'm not hungry!" shouted Liz rushing out of the front door.

"Y tus libros (And your books)? Como vas a estudiar sin tus utiles (How are you going to study without your supplies)?" tried to shout back Grams but Liz had already left.

"Ugh. Well how is she supposed to do well in school with no breakfast or books?" asked Grams of David who offered no answer.

"Well, what happened? Did you talk to her yesterday?" asked Grams sensing David knew more than his shrug lead to believe.

"I should get going too," said David trying to escape as well, but Grams was not falling for that twice. The woman wanted answer and she would not be left in the dark.

"Ohh no. A donde cres que vas (where do you think you are going)? Y ahora proque todos tan appurados de repente (Why is everyone in a hurry all of a sudden). Esa nunca corre a la escuela y tu no tienes donde que ir (That one never runs to school and you have nowhere to go). Entonses habla (So talk). Que se traen usteds (What's going on between you two)?" Grams demanded to know.

David tried to resist Grams prodding for information, but even his military, anti-recon training could not keep his swelling emotions from pushing through him. He was feed up and angry and wanting to get it off his chest. He would rather not take it out on Grams but he knew she would just be relentless and not let him go without him saying something.

"I spoke with Liz yesterday and it didn't go well," he said.

"Well you can't expect it go perfectly the first time out. So what happened?" asked Grams.

"It's not that it was just bad..." said David searching for his words carefully and struggling to find them.

"It's just not going to work. I can't do this. I think it would be better if I just left. I don't belong here," he said unloading an unwanted burden he never intended to carry for long.

Grams waited for a moment while she took in David's position. She had waited for him to reach this point ever since he had arrived but actually hearing it shook her more than she had prepared for.

"And where do you think you belong? Out there in the middle of some god forsaken desert? In some strange land? Away from your family? Away from your Country? Where nobody cares about what you do or what happens to you?" she asked him, insulted that her love and care for him were seemingly disregarded.

"That's not true. What I do out there matters and people care about me and what I can do there!" Replied David, now defensive of is choice for home and life.

"And we don't? You think what you do here doesn't matter?" replied Grams.

"Do what? I can't do anything. I don't have a job to contribute. I can't keep you from working all day, every day, and I can't help Liz, or keep her from going down the path she is heading!" he said angrily facing his failures.

"I'm not asking you to take care of me or for your money! If you think that you just being here is useless than you are wrong! You just being here, just your presence is a lot of help. You can find a job later. That's not a problem. Everyone else does. But you can't just run off! We can still reach Liz if we stick together. But if we fall apart then this is it! Ya nos chingamos (we are fucked)!" replied Grams animated and upset.

"I already tried and it didn't work. I just made things worse!" replied David recalling his failed attempt the night before.

"Ohh one time! Try doing it night after night for the last fifteen years! You think it gets easier? It's always hard. It's always a battle and you never get any thanks or recognition or even a sign that it's working," Grams said now recalling the extensively, endless task of raising now two generations that life so thoughtlessly and mercilessly threw at her.

"Then why do it? I never asked to be in this situation," said David feeling foolish of letting such a childish sentiment get ou,t but still true none the less.

"Ohh David really? Tan grandote y tan pendejo (This old and this stupid)?" replied Gams accordingly to the remark.

"Nobody asks for these kinds of things to come our way. If we could all plan our lives out perfectly and say 'Oh at this stage I'll do this and at this part I'll do that and then this will happen and I'll get this and that' then uhh we'd all be perfect, and life would be fantastic!" she replied.

"But life isn't like that. It's never like that! You plan as best as you can, and do the best you can, and hope that you will get somewhere close to where you wanted to go. And sometimes you are chugging along, going your way and then 'Bamm-Madres (Mother)'! Your perfect plans are turned to shit and everything is upside down and you don't know what side is up, or left, or right, and then what? What do you do then?...

You pick whatever is left not broken. Dust yourself, and limp your way on as best you can. Llorando y todo lo que quieras (crying and everything you want). Because I'll tell you, those life hits hurt! Y se vale llorar y sobar (And it's fair to cry and rub your wounds). But you can't just stay there lying on the ground feeling sorry about yourself, or your broken dreams, or your perfect plans. Because life is not going to wait for you. And it hurts man, I tell you, it hurts. And you get hit ALL the time and it doesn't get easier as you get older either. You just have to learn to take them and just keep going," said Grams becoming more and more emotional.

"Well that's not very encouraging," said David daunted by the visual.

"That's why it'd be easier if I was on my own and only worried about me," he continued.

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