Spotlight on Lisette García
What It Means To Be An American
You know you've become one of us
when you can butcher any language with equal savagery,
including that of living kinfolk
(never forgetting where you've stashed them,
in the event of an ethnic festival or similar emergency.)
It also means laughing the loudest at a joke about the old
country;
Allowing you to hold Old Glory in standard disregard
--unless we've gone to war again,
(when it's Dukes of Hazzard time for everyone, of course.)
And, God knows, to be an American, you must eschew life's simple
pleasures
--except the kind outlined in singles ads but never conducted
(like the seaside, sunset walking of dogs and other mushy customs
of that sort.)
Lastly, you must not know the craving of an ice-cold Coca-Cola
Because, in the U.S., you always have the liberty of a can at
your disposal.
Lisette García: Lisette García is a former
journalist, Tupperware lady and US Marine. These days she is
proudest reporting that her 7-year-old son, Justice, and her
10-month-old rooster, Precioso, are equally fond of vacuum-packed
corn. Reach her via ligarcia@yahoo.com.
