El Mirage

I know, I know.

It’s been a few days.  Like the rest of the teams scattered throughout the U.S., over here in El Mirage, we too have had to deal with dead ends, slow days, and false promises of returning a call.  Maybe it’s the sun that has sucked the energy out of me, or maybe I’m just homesick, but there have been many days here when I feel like I have no spark to get me going.

Don’t get me wrong–we’ve met some wonderful, helpful people.  People like Jim Heinrich, a teacher at Dysart High School who has guided Brad and I pretty much everyday, and was the first person to help get our foot in the door.  Or Tom Campanella, the executive director of the community center who years ago moved to Arizona to escape the hustle and bustle of the east.  And finally, Susie Ortiz, the education coordinator of the community center, who has a constant smile on her face and has helped us meet numerous people, constantly making calls and establishing connections.

Susie put us in contact with Karina, a 23-year-old Colombian immigrant who runs a business with her mom here in El Mirage.  Along with running the Colombian Express, Karina works two other jobs: one at a grocery store and one at UPS.  Why? To save up money in hopes to go to grad school for interior design or architecture. Brad and I stepped into her small business on Thursday, and had a conversation with her in both English and Spanish and were able to learn more about her.

Karina left her home in Colombia three years ago to be with her mother and grandmother here in Arizona.  Leaving Colombia meant leaving most of her close relationships behind: with her father, her friends–and her husband.  Karina married her husband just this past February 14 in Las Vegas, and has not seen him since then.  “It’s hard,” she says. “Every time we talk it’s like ‘I just want to be with you’ and we keep saying, ‘We just have to wait a little bit more.’”

Why wait?

Karina’s husband is in the Colombian Navy.  “He lives on a boat,” she says with a laugh.  So how do they keep in touch?

They talk everyday, Karina says, whether it’s by telephone or through MSN instant messaging and a webcam.

She’s still not exactly sure the next time she’ll be with him.

Karina represents many of the immigrants here in El Mirage.  Although, most of the immigrants are Mexican, not Colombian, and many of them haven’t seen their families for years. Karina’s business allows these people to come in and use the computers for up to an hour, and most of them use the internet (only $2.50) to communicate with their families back home.

While it sounds like Karina is in the same boat, technically she’s not.  Karina is educated; she has a degree in interior design from when she studied at university in Colombia.  Many people here have not had the chance pursue that far of an education. Even though she’s been in the U.S. for three years, she claims that it’s still been hard for her to make friends.  She has very little here; most of her good friends are still in Colombia or scattered throughout the country.  So not only is there a separation between Karina and the El Mirage community, but she’s also separated from the people she is closest to.

Makes me think twice about being homesick.