TheThe HartfordHartford CatholicCatholic WorkerWorker St. Martin De Porres House St. Brigid House What does God require but to do justice, and to love kindness and to walk humbly... Micah 6:8 Was there a moment, known only to God, when all the stars held their breath, when the gal- axies paused in their dance for a fraction of a second, and the Word, who had called it all into being, went with all his love into the womb of a young girl, and the universe started to breathe again, and the ancient harmonies re- sumed their song, and the angels Jacqueline Allen-Doucot clapped their hands for joy? Madeleine L‘Engle Advent 2008 1 The Hartford Catholic Worker Established November 3, 1993 Volume 16 Number 5 The Hartford Catholic Worker is published bimonthly by the St. Martin De Porres Catholic Worker community. We are a lay community of Catholics, and like minded friends, living in the north end of Hartford, working and praying for an end to violence and poverty. We are not a —tax-exempt“ agency. We do not accept government funding. Our ability to house the homeless, feed the hungry, and work with the children depends on contributions from our readers. We are not paid. We can be reached at: 18 Clark St., Hartford CT 06120; (860) 724-7066, [email protected] and www.hartfordcatholicworker.org We are: Brian Kavanagh, Sarah Karas, Jacqueline, Christopher, Micah and Ammon Allen-Doucot. You may write me down in history ‘Cause I laugh like I‘ve got gold mines pain Diggin‘ in my own back yard. With your bitter, twisted lies, I rise You may trod me in the very dirt I‘m a black ocean, leaping and wide, You may shoot me with your words, But still, like dust, I‘ll rise. Welling and swelling I bear in the tide. You may cut me with your eyes, Leaving behind nights of terror and fear You may kill me with your hatefulness, Does my sassiness upset you? I rise Why are you beset with gloom? Into a daybreak that‘s wondrously clear ‘Cause I walk like I‘ve got oil wells I rise Pumping in my living room. Still I Rise Bringing the gifts that my ancestors gave, Maya Angelou I am the dream and the hope of the slave. Just like moons and like suns, I rise With the certainty of tides, I rise Just like hopes springing high, I rise. Ω But still, like air, I‘ll rise. Still I‘ll rise. Does my sexiness upset you? Did you want to see me broken? Does it come as a surprise Bowed head and lowered eyes? That I dance like I‘ve got diamonds Shoulders falling down like teardrops. At the meeting of my thighs? Weakened by my soulful cries. Out of the huts of history‘s shame Does my haughtiness offend you? I rise Don‘t you take it awful hard Up from a past that‘s rooted in St. Martin‘s Calendar W Please join us on Tuesday, January 6, October 5 and November 2 February 3, and March 3 at 7:30 PM for the celebration of Mass at St. Brigid House, 18 Clark St., Hartford. Refreshments and conversation follow Mass. þ Our vigil for an end to war continues on Friday‘s from 11:30-12:30 outside the Federal Building on Main St. in Hartford. Please bring a sign and join our call for an end to the American military occupation of Iraq. Yolanda Lopez 2 We Don‘t Get Nine Lives Christopher J. Doucot arrived. Each year the wonderful people of St. butternut and acorn squash he had gleaned. I anticipated that Sunday October 12th Therese Catholic Church of Granby gather —Great“ he said, —I‘ll be right in“. I‘m writing on would be a little bit busy since two suburban linens for us to distribute to the people of the the following Friday and nearly all of the churches were scheduled to drop off some neighborhood. As with the bread we are simply hundreds of squash Ralph dropped off have donations and both Jackie and Brian were away, the middle men/women. If we step back and been taken by neighbors. but like most days at the Catholic Worker much think about it aren‘t we called to be middle Being energetic and a carpenter Ralph of that Sabbath day was spent responding to men and women with all of God‘s wealth? asked to look at the major repair we had done the ad hoc: unscripted moments of charity, making sure not to keep more than we need to St. Martin House last year. The repair did absurdity and tragedy. and sharing the rest with our sisters and not go as well as we hoped. The group we The day began quietly enough with the brothers. After Sarah, Micah and I unloaded the hired works with teens from this neighborhood nine A.M. Gospel Choir mass across the street sheets and blankets I returned home to read who have dropped out of school. The students at St. Mike‘s. After mass our dear friend go to class part time and learn carpentry part Andrea was waiting for me on the porch. time while we get the work done at a discount. Andrea is a tireless, hardworking and generous Unfortunately, the supervision of the young soul despite being absolutely destitute. Andrea people was a bit lacking; mistakes were made- lives in an immaculate and over priced carpentry and otherwise. The city has yet to apartment in an otherwise squalid building with approve the work and the cellar still leaks when her sixteen year old daughter and twenty year it rains so Ralph offered to spend the rest of his old son. Aside from the portrait of a pasty Sunday fixing the repair. Unfortunately I was white Jesus on the wall and the kittens not in a space to spend the rest of the day scurrying underfoot her apartment is sparse. doing construction since I had to prepare my The front door doesn‘t open completely lecture (and three weeks earlier I had cut off because of a 2x4 nailed to the floor; at night one of my fingers- though that‘s a story for another 2x4 is propped between it and the another day). So Ralph agreed to survey the job doorknob. Andrea had come to borrow one of the paper before heading over to the office to and buy the materials needed to do it right. our folding tables but now she needed a ride as catch up on some paper work confident that the By the time Ralph returned with the well. Andrea is a fantastic cook. Given the afternoon would be quiet. While I was reading concrete mix and lumber Andrea was calling opportunity she could cook for a high end Sarah welcomed the generous folks from St. from Bushnell Park to be picked up so after restaurant. On this day she had obtained a Ann‘s in Avon who had come to donate a room Micah and I unloaded Ralph‘s truck I headed permit from the city and was headed to full of food. downtown. I realized poor Andrea did not have Bushnell Park to sell some of her home cooking With the food unloaded and stored in the a good day when I began loading nearly full to the folks attending a Puerto Rican festival in pantry Sarah headed off to yoga and then to her trays of chicken and rice back into the van. It order to make the rent. Knowing how great her parents home where she got into an unex- turns out that even though she had the best cooking is I had no doubt she would make her pected conversation about anarchy. Meanwhile food she was not in the best location. A spot in rent and more. up in the office I was preparing my lecture for the midst of the action cost a thousand dollars. By the time I returned home Sarah was my Monday class at CCSU when I got a call Andrea only had $300 dollars she had made at making croûtons with the left over left over from an incredibly generous (and unbelievably an earlier event selling bottled water which she bread from Panera. Each week we get a energetic dentist/carpenter/humanitarian) invested in the food she prepared. All told wonderful delivery of this left over bread that friend of ours who had returned from a mission Andrea sold only $60 worth of food which she we share with the neighborhood. Usually we trip to Haiti the night before. Dr. Ralph had split with her sister and niece. I was furious are able to give it all away but when there is planned to spend his Sabbath practicing the that she had lost $240 after working so hard. extra Sarah makes her incredible croûtons/ biblical work (Lev. 23:22)of gleaning the fields —Chris“ she said said in her heavily accented butter delivery morsels. of a squash farmer. Ralph called to make sure I voice, stretching the —is“ part of my name with By mid day the first church donation had would be home to accept the truck load of (See Nine Lives, p4) 3 Nine Lives Cont. hitting another pole, a s.u.v overturned making fifty yard long debris field. The broken glass Nine Lives Cont. a turn way too fast and now this. The city‘s made the street shimmer as though it were a response was that there were not enough field of diamonds- fool‘s diamond‘s.