Table of Contents
Introduction Joe O'Connell 1
Pandemic Time 5
The New Cartography Julia Guez 6
Treasures Within the Temple LiAundra Grace 7
The Road Between San Antonio and Comstock Texas Naomi Shihab Nye 9
[Through plaster walls I hear the wailing] Octavio Quintanilla 10
Memos from Afar Robin Bradford 11
In This Way Kevin Prufer 12
Still Life When All Our Symptoms Seem to Have Symptoms of Their Own Julia Guez 15
House. Church. Jill Alexander Essbaum 17
Contraries 21
Belief and Doubt
Tender Interior Christian Wiman 24
Even Sound Hides Its Face Robert Okaji 27
Beginning to Shape Ulf Kirchdorfer 28
Jesus Likes to Hang Out on the San Juan Water Tower Charles McGregor 29
Grace, 1982 Octavio Quintanilla 30
Texas, Out Driving Naomi Shihab Nye 31
El Cuarto de los Milagros Diana López 32
The Pilot Mary Helen Specht 37
Kafir 1 Tarfia Faizullah 48
Kafir 2 Tarfia Faizullah 50
Magdalen Angélique Jamail 52
Good and Evil
When I Heard the Learn'd Astronomer Chaitali Sen 56
Five Snapshots of Jarrell, Texas, May 27, 1997 Al Haley 71
God's Hands Octavio Quintanilla 76
A few at the Airport Rich Levy 78
Sinful Rich Levy 80
Witnesses Steve Weathers 82
On Forgiving Leslie Jill Patterson 93
Trew Reade: A Reporters Story A. G. Mojtabai 99
The Border Bruce Bond 106
Baptism M. M. De Voe 112
Small Town Agnostic's Prayer J. Scott Brownlee 116
Dog Star J. Scott Brownlee 118
Made in Nigeria Jessica Wilbanks 120
Love and Hope
Pagans Rick Bass 132
Kindred Spirit Rich Levy 149
Psalm 2 Octavio Quintanilla 151
An Old Lady Hunting Treasure Peter Hoheisel 153
Homing In Monica Macansantos 154
Christmas House, Vallejo, California Monica Macansantos 155
When You Ask Me If I Believe Robin Gara 157
Shoulders Naomi Shihab Nye 158
Wading in the Water of the Trinity River: A Womanist Perspective Yvette R. Blair-Lavallais 159
Known and Unknown
The Martyrs of Mountain Peak Owen Egerton 164
Smith Canyon Noel Crook 172
Calf Chris Ellery 173
The Ghosts on Farm Road Mark Sanders 174
La Grange Robert Okaji 176
A Stockyard Liturgy D. G. Geis 177
Lazarus Alive William Virgil Davis 178
Lighthouse, Port Isabel Carol Coffee Reposa 179
The Window Brian Van Reet 180
Credo John Fry 193
To get there John Fry 195
Way-Seeking Nan Cuba 196
The Black Madonna of Czestochowa Robin Davidson 200
Truth and Beauty
West News from the Little Bend of South View Jim LaVilla-Havelin 204
Bluebonnet Sutra Laurence Musgrove 206
Taking on the Big One Charles Taylor 207
At the Heart of the Heart Charles Taylor 208
Call It a Kind of Grace Steve Wilson 209
Grandfather's Heaven Naomi Shihab Nye 210
Novel Excerpt from Blood Money Gary T. McDonald 211
A Frontier's Passing Heath Dollar 218
Delayed Baggage, Oswiecim, 2004 Robin Davidson 222
And Finally the Tragedy Blake Kimzey 223
Joy and Gratitude
Honest Gospel Singing Greg Brownderville 226
Female Energy along the Camino That Is Life Norma Elia Cantú 228
Of the Beginning Loretta Diane Walker 233
Sacrifice Loretta Diane Walker 234
Epiphany Angélique Jamail 235
Thank You Very Much Ursula Pike 236
The Trail John Blair 242
Guns and Hard Candy Robert Flynn 245
Acknowledgments 251
Contributors 255
About the Editors 269