It was a long night. Forty hour long night.

With intermittent takes of Rico out for his urge of relieving himself.

He has a UTI…was given antibiotics yesterday. Didn’t have any dinner.

He didn’t feel like eating. Went to bed at one in the morning.

An hour later. Had to take him out again. Then at 3:00 and 4:00 and

5:00…and at 7:00…refused to taste his food again…

was given his medicine in a small piece of chicken…that held him until

8:30 AM…drank water…went back to bed…10.00 AM…some knocking at

the door…drag myself to answer it…three radiant women in long

dresses with large smiles showing perfect teeth..and angelical voices…

asked me if I wanted to secure my ticket to Paradise…by chitchatting

a few minutes with them. It wasn’t going to take long…my eyes were

bloodshot from the long night…my two left hairs in top of my head

we’re not combed…my old bath robe was starting to slip off my waist…

risking the moment of exposing myself in all my beauty to them…

tempting them to sin…I tied it up. Something in my appearance must

have made them recoil from their poised smiles…when they apologized

for waking me up…at that moment not even Maria Magdalene would

have made me sign on the Salvation Train.

Ernesto Onofre