innocence .

chapter 1 - part time job

Luna stood on a busy corner of an intersection all day selling flowers to tourists . When the stoplight turned red, she walked along the sidewalk with a bouquet held high, as she called, “Flowers, beautiful flowers, fresh flower” .

She moved back along the lind, three or four cars, in the hope of making a sale before the light turned green . When someone rolled down the window she stepped off the curb .

" Three dollars or this bunch. I can make a special bunch if you want to pull over .” If the transaction took too long, the drivers behind beeped their horns in irritation .

Dezzy worked for Luna on weekends. After Dezzy’s father deserted her and her mom, the extra money helped toward the never ending influx of bills .

For two weeks, Luna trained eight year old Dezzy in the art of the hustle and the sale. Luna also taught her many things about being street wise .

" Don’t get too close to the car, just close enough to reach the money. Wear an elastic band on your wrist. See . Like this . ” Luna pulled at the elastic band on her right wrist .

“When they hand you a bill, say out loud what the bill is, for example, ′ Change from five, or from ten .′ Put the bill under the elastic band.” Luna took the bill from her pocket, placed it on the back of her hand, and slid it under the elastic band .

" See, just like that. If they claim they gave you a larger bill, you’ll have the money right infront of them . When you take money, make it obvious what you’re doing with it. They’ll know they can’t cheat you . Never put the money until after they’ve gone . ”

" Smile all the time. Be extra nice. Sometime the honest ones will give you a tip .”

Luna turned to the flower cart and opened a drawer where she kept scissors, ribbons, tissue, paper, tape, and elastic bands .

" Hold out your hand,” she said, and slipped an elastic band on Dezzy’s wrist . ” You do the next sale for good practice “.

On the third week, Luna placed Dezzy on a street corner two blocks away, close enough to be watched.. f it looked like someone was giving her trouble, Luna could run over there in a hurry .

At the end of the day, they deducted the cost of the flowers sold, and as they split the remainder of the money, they talked .

Luna soon became a new friend and surrogate mother .

On a section of a dirt road on Dezzy’s way home, three young boys stepped out from behind some bushes, and blocked her way.

The bigger one in the center said, “Hey, girl. Where d’ya think your goin’?”

“I’m going home.”

“Not this way, you’re not, unless you pay the toll.”

“What toll? I’m not paying you anything. This isn’t your road.” “I’m making it my road. You don’t pay. You don’t pass.”

Dezzy tried to walk around them, but the leader said, “Grab her arms?” Dezzy struggled and yelled, “Let go of me. Help! Somebody help me!”

As the leader came toward her she tried to kick him, but he stepped to the side. She squirmed with all her might as he searched her pockets until he found the one with the money.

She yelled as loud as she could. “Put that back, you cockroach.”

He counted it and said, “Wow! Jackpot, boys, we made a day’s pay.” He took a single dollar bill and pushed it back into her pocket. “Here. We don’t want you to go away broke. Come back and see us real soon. Okay, boys, let her go.

They ran toward the slight embankment leading to the bushes, but not fast enough.

Dezzy grabbed a handful of rocks and hurled them as fast as she could. “You scum. I’ll have the police on you.”

She hit one of the smaller kids in the back just before they disappeared into the shrub growth. He yelled “Ow”, but kept on running.

After being robbed, she went crying to the old gardener she worked for a couple evenings per week.

“Stop that howling” He said. “What’s the problem?”

After Dezzy told him what happened he said, “Well stick up

for yourself.”

“How?” she cried.

“You got fists don’t you?”

“Yes.”

Then use them. Come over here, and I’ll show you what to do?”

He had boxed professionally, and each time she finished her work for him, he taught her more about how to protect herself. Years later, thanks to his training, she won twenty dollars in her first official fight.

Right away, Dezzy used what he taught her about fighting by protecting her money from the bigger kids that waited to ambush her on the way home .

Now, before walking home, she put singles in different pockets, so the robbers never got it all. Larger bills she kept in her shoes. Any money they found on her, cost them split lips, black eyes or scratches. Her fierce fighting earned their respect, and soon after, they let her pass unharmed. A broomstick from the garbage, cut in half, kept any new robbers at bay.

After some experience, Dezzy learned to size up people by listening to them speak a few sentences. Some people are book smart and people stupid. But, even at her young age, Dezzy had the gift of discernment of persons.

She knew by instantaneous insight the quality of character. Sometimes she perverted this gift for personal benefit, but it also rang an alarm bell in her heart in case of danger.

One day as she waited on a pedestrian customer she overheard a couple in a convertible one car back from the stoplight.

“Oh, Honey. Look at that cute little Mexican girl selling flowers on the corner. Let’s pull over. Look at her black hair, it’s..., it’s..., iridescent. A little waif out in this heat, trying to make some money. Be sure to give her a little extra. ”

Dezzy sensed another opportunity to practice her acting skills. She knew when to disregard Luna’s advice to always display a big smile along with happy, happy talk from the little foreign girl.

She slumped her shoulders a little as she turned from the sidewalk to the curb. Dezzy had on her sad

face as the car pulled up alongside.

The woman said, “Hello, little girl.”

“Hello. You buy flowers, please?” “Yes. Two bunches.”

The beautiful lady wore a short sleeved print dress with a pearl choker on her neck. She appeared cool under a wide brimmed straw hat with double red ribbons trailing off the back.

After making two bouquets from the assorted flowers, Dezzy said, “I put extra red flowers to match dress and ribbon in hat. You pretty lady?” “Well, thank you. Tell me, are you out here all day in this heat?”

“Yes, all day weekends.” With the back of her hand, Dezzy wiped the sweat off her forehead.

Don’t you have a hat to protect you from the sun?”

“Can’t pay for one. I have old towel. When it get bad, I put it on head.” She held up what anyone else would have considered just an old rag. “Oh, dear! Is it worth your time? Do you make good money on the flowers?”

“My boss get all money ”

He pay me twenty five cents an hour. They’re his flowers. He count when I leave in the morning. At night he count what’s left. If money not right, he take from my pay?”

“Is this how you earn your spending money?”

“Money go for food. Father run away so I try help. I buy rice and beans before go home.”

“You don’t have any other food in the house?”

“Don’t keep food in apartment. Rats eat it.”

Dezzy could tell by the startled look on the lady’s face that the story had the intended impact.

Her broken English dramatized her tale of woe. She continued to tell the couple about her miserable dilapidated apartment and if she got up to go to the bathroom at night, she put her shoes on first so she wouldn’t step on the roaches in her bare feet.

Before she went into a room, she would turn on a light to give the roaches time to scatter.

She had the undivided attention of the couple.

For added effect she wiped a false tear at the corner of her eye and forced her voice to crack when she talked about her poor little brother born with a defective leg because her mother used a lot of drugs during the pregnancy.

“He can’t walk, but he happy boy. He play on floor all day. Sometime nice tourists give me tip. On good day I have money to buy him little treat.” Dezzy saw the lady’s eyes brimming with tears.

This is a good time to stop. Back to business. She told them the cost of the flowers and touched the lady’s hand as she handed them to her.

The gentleman took the money from his wallet. Dezzy had done a good job of evoking his sympathy, too.

As he reached across the seat to hand Dezzy the money he said, “Keep the change.”

The woman took off her hat. “You take this. It’s almost noon. You need the protection.” She asked her husband for an additional ten dollar bill and handed it to Dezzy. “You buy yourself and your brother a nice treat tonight. Goodbye, Sweetheart.”

They pulled away and Dezzy waved until they were out of sight. She took off her shoe, folded the ten dollar bill and put it in her sock under the arch of her foot.

Dezzy felt no guilt about fabricating an invalid brother. On the contrary, she had done a good deed. That lady went home happy. She had a story she’d repeat to friends at cocktail parties about the poor urchin living in such squalid conditions south of the border.

Of course, Mrs. Nice Lady wouldn’t fail to mention how generous they were. Dezzy imagined the lady saying, “Why I’ll bet that little girl never had that much money in her hand all at once.”

She would tell her friends, “That little girl danced on the sidewalk all happy, and then started to cry. She couldn’t stop thanking me. “You good people. Bless you. You nice lady?”

Dezzy adjusted her new hat for maximum shade. She turned to see Luna, two blocks down, watching her. Luna spread her hands out, palms up, as if asking, “What’s going on?”

In response, Dezzy made a fist, raised her arm, and pumped it up and down twice, like pulling on a train whistle; their signal for “Everything okay?”

A fast learner, Dezzy developed her expertise in playing tourists to get extra money. For ten years Dezzy worked part time, saving for that wonderful day when she could pay her passage across the border.

The cute little eight year old faded into the past, and in her place stood a shrewd, eighteen-year-old street fighter with a knock-out body.