As I sit to write this week’s column, I am also finishing the letter of recommendation that a former employee and now friend has asked me to write.
He has been working for a prestigious defense contractor in Texas and is now applying to law school. He was born and raised in Española and by all accounts is an exceptional human being. He told me at a young age, while he still worked at the restaurant more than 10 years ago, that he needed to get out. His dreams and aspirations lay elsewhere.
He started work as a bus boy when he turned 15. He cleaned tables, swept and mopped floors and cleaned the bathrooms. In very short order, he quickly made his way up to food runner. Fastidious and tidy, he was typical in many ways of the young people I see in Northern New Mexico.
He was, in short, a hard worker. I was reminded of him today because I happened to ask a new employee if she was from here. (Let’s put aside for now the legality of asking that kind of question.)
She is a senior in high school and said, yes, she was born here. I noticed her work and, true to form, she was careful and diligent.
I stopped short of asking what she wanted to do after graduation for fear of hearing the usual “get out of here.” I hear it too often and it makes me sad.
It’s why I feel compelled to do something. Anything. Shout from the rooftop, “Please vote for a change of the current administration!” It’s the kind of thing people are tired of and certainly the reason our kids just want to leave.
I already see the movidas building up for the current election cycle. The same cast of characters who either exhibit bad behavior or enable it are lining up to bus in their votes.
We have got to change. I know it sounds trite and it’s clearly been said a million times. But there has never been a more compelling argument that our kids need us now more than ever.
Maybe we’re family to those who are running or we’ve known them since forever. Perhaps a more compelling argument than “things will never change” might be whether you think our kids will be more likely to stay in Española or leave with your choice of mayor and councilors. We cannot normalize ineptitude and moral depravity lest we begin to internalize it. That’s how the chaos becomes intergenerational. Breaking the cycle will take giving kids hope and a reason to stay.
This morning I also got to hear from the mom of a former employee who must be 20 years old now. She was radiant. She was talking proudly about him and said he was out hunting.
He’s a guide and loves the outdoors. He has shown resilience, strength and independence. He also happens to be dating one of the strongest and most motivated young ladies I have ever met.
She was a hostess when he was a busser and they started dating. She is doing clinicals at the hospital now. I couldn’t be more proud.
We raise good if not great children in this valley. They need structure, good role models and growth opportunities.
We need to give them a reason to stay, yet be proud of them when they choose to leave. Your vote this March will determine whether the political drama and chaos of the last four years continues on to perpetuity or whether we put a stop to it.
Now is the time to steer the boat in a different direction.
Javier Sanchez is an El Rito Media columnist, former Española mayor, and restaurant owner.