front cover ceramic by Milestone 2003 Lillian Barajas East Los Angeles College M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 East Los Angeles College Jae Kang M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 East Los Angeles College Monterey Park, California M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 Editor, Advisor Carol Lem Selection Staff Creative Writing Class of Spring 2003 Book Design Trish Glover Photography Christine Moreno Ceramics Maricela Alvarez, Juan Arreano, Lillian Barajas, Jae Kang, David Kurland, Tomoko Morishita, Takeya Oe, Larry Ortega, Rosa Pinuelas, Gladys Quinonez, Rosendo Rodriquez, Tamara Shubin, Christopher Turk East Los Angeles College 1301 Avenida Cesar Chavez Monterey Park, California 91754 Milestone is published under the sponsorship of the East Los Angeles College English Department. Material is solicited from students of the college. The printing of Milestone was made possible through the generous support of the East Los Angeles College Foundation. “We suffocate among people who think they are absolutely right, whether in their machines or their ideas. And for all those who can live only in an atmosphere of human dialogue, the silence is the end of the world.” — Albert Camus M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 3 Editor’s Notes n this warm summer morning I am sitting at my Odesk, hoping for the words to express themselves effortlessly and in perfect order. But I’ve been writing and teaching long enough to real- ize that the muse, the creative spirit, or the process just doesn’t work that way. For as poet and teacher William Stafford says, “A writer is not so much someone who has something to say as he is someone who has found a process that will bring about new things he would not have thought of if he had not started to say them.” So as I’m sipping coffee reflecting on his words, I’m thinking of the years I’ve spent engaging in an activity that has brought on a succession of poems, narratives, and memories, a process which has helped me to help others to bring out their stories, poems, essays, screenplays, or ran- dom thoughts and emotions. One key element to this process, Stafford says, is “just plain receptivity.” Similarly, I like to have a spacious interval and special place where I’m not going to be interrupted, except for the cat nibbling my elbow. Whether it’s twenty minutes, an hour, or more, I’m there waiting, like fishing, hooking anything that bites. The point is to get started and trust that the meandering will take us where we need to go even if we have to edit subsequent drafts. The other key element is reading and studying writers, including imitating their techniques to provide the scaffolding that brings out our own voices. Even writing interpretive essays in response to a writer’s work serves to educate our craft. Surprising results emerge from this process of “plain receptivity” and the close study of text. Milestone 2003, then, reminds us again of this process and of the rich body of voices we have here at East Los Angeles College, voices that cross cultural, ethnic, generational, thematic borders to meet at the crossroads of creative pollination. Within this bouquet, we have blooming flowers as well as buds that are just beginning to open. And, as in previous Milestones, students continue to examine and confront the enduring issues that impact their lives: identity (personal, ethnic, political), family, the neighborhood, education, love, friendship. But war and the current 4 East Los Angeles College state of society, in particular the events triggered by our recent involve- ment in Iraq, have become additional issues for ELAC writers: for example, Frank Castorena’s The Truth Is…, Javier Diaz’s Real Guys, David Dominquez’s In Retrospect and War and Sensibility, Oscar Hernandez’s The Rogue Nation, Nathan Smith’s One More Tomorrow, and perhaps as a consequence of the contemporary scene Nathan Smith takes his reader on a spiritual vision quest in Arizona Suite. I would also point out to instructors and future contributors that Milestone 2003, as in Milestone 2002, includes samples of essays written in response to text and/or film: for example, Oscar Hernandez’s His-panic! Who’s Panicking? and Dear Malcolm X, Michelle Iwaki’s Conflicted Existence, Kevin Ma’s To Teenagers—Looking for Self-Assurance?, Adriana Michel’s In My Blood, Bob Noz’s Ikiru: What is the Choice to Live Rather Than to Exist? and Raymond Carver’s Short Cuts: from Short Stories to Film, and Louise Leftoff’s Rashomon: Truth Is in the Eye of the Beholder. Finally, as the Creative Writing instructor for the Spring 2003 class, I would like to express my appreciation to the class for their contribution in selecting these writings. I am also grateful to Trish Glover for design- ing and formatting this issue, members of the Art Department (Jim Uyekawa, Christine Moreno and Christopher Turk) for providing the graphics; Selina Chi and Stan Lim from Resource Development whose support has made Milestone 2003 possible; and to my colleagues in the English Department, Susan Suntree, Joan Gurfield, Eduardo Munoz, Sheila Goldstein, James Kenny, and Gisela Herrera, thank you for your advice and input. – Carol Lem M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 5 Contents Daniel Carrillo An Argument for the 9 Incorporation of Dance Into the English Department Curriculum Daniel Carrillo The Season 12 Daniel Carrillo The Specimens 13 Frank Castorena, Jr. I 16 Frank Castorena, Jr. See the Truth Is… 17 Hang Deng Gift from God 18 Javier Diaz This is Where I Live 28 Javier Diaz Real Guys 29 David Dominguez In Retrospect 32 David Dominguez War and Sensibility 35 Robert Duran Sonnets: Overcome, Love and 39 Struggle Victor Garcia Remember the Time We Had to Run 41 John Arthur Gonzalez Anxiety 42 Ramon Gonzalez Only One 44 Ramon Gonzalez I Belong 47 Ramon Gonzalez Home Sweet Hell 48 Oscar Hernandez His-panic! Who’s Panicking? 49 Oscar Hernandez A Letter: Malcolm X’s Justifiable 53 Violence Oscar Hernandez The Rogue Nation 57 Martha G. Isiordia My Sister 62 Martha G. Isiordia Looking Back 65 Michelle Iwaki Conflicted Existence 67 Joseph Juarez A Cat’s Whore 71 Joseph Juarez Balance 72 Joseph Juarez Laundromat 85 Louise Leftoff Rashomon: Truth Is in the 86 Eye of the Beholder Carol Lem Close-Up 94 6 East Los Angeles College Valerie Li Rat Race 96 Valerie Li Same Road Different Journey 97 Ruben Mario Lopez Just a Game 98 Ruben Mario Lopez Infection 101 Ruben Mario Lopez I Lay Him Down Today 103 Kevin Ma To Teenagers: Looking for 106 Self-Assurance? Stefanie Martinez This is My Story 108 Stefanie Martinez Transplanted 111 Alex Mejia From Father to Son 112 Adriana Michel In My Blood 120 Bob Noz Ikiru: What Is the Choice to 123 Live Rather Than to Exist? Bob Noz Raymond Carver’s Short Cuts: 129 from Short Stories to Film (Artistic Visions, Collaborative Revisions, and Inspiration) Nathan Smith LA 134 Nathan Smith Arizona Suite 135 Nathan Smith Solemn Sings a New Song 142 (Inspired by Edward Hopper’s “Hotel Room,” 1931) Nathan Smith One More Tomorrow 143 (Dedicated to the truly innocent) Nathan Smith How I See Myself as a Writer 145 Nathan Smith Motions 146 Matilda Timbrello On The Street Where I Live 148 Matilda Timbrello If Only 150 Liwen Tsai Not Another Poem of Love 152 Yong Ren Zhao My Mother’s Hands 153 Contributors’ Notes 154 M i l e s t o n e 2 0 0 3 7 Gladys Quinonez 8 East Los Angeles College Daniel Carrillo | An Argument for the Incorporation of Dance Into the English Department Curriculum irst let us establish a general account of the English F Department’s goals. The two fundamental concepts that are most common in any English class are reading and writing. The department means to improve the writing skills of students (this is but a part of their mission and by no means its entirety). Before improvement can begin students must be familiar with current trends and classic forms of writ- ing. Here enters the broad genre of literature, which the students will read. Reading is a complicated and abstract concept. In essence writers are attempting to transcribe inherently complex and abstract ideas and emotions by means of combinations of letters. In this sense literature is a highly organic creature that is dissected and examined. There is then a dualistic relationship in teaching reading and writing. Both respected parties are inseparable. The tools that students should embody are disci- pline, concentration, and an understanding of humanity. Discipline is innate to college level studies because the students must be able to con- trol the flesh and apply themselves to the enlightenment that is academic studies. A certain order is required during a lecture. If the students lack the discipline to compose themselves to their maximum potential all is lost. The students must also possess concentration. This is necessary in listening to lectures, writing assignments, and in reading designated selections. The students need to focus and be able to absorb the material that is being presented. If the students are distracted by outside forces, they will not learn and worse they will not achieve their maximum potential. Their potential can never bloom if they have no understanding of humanity. Since literature is a symbolic form of expression, represent- ing cultures and conflicts, students must understand humanity.