Read Let Their Spirits Dance for Free Online Page B

smiling, walking backward like he’s balancing on a tightrope. Then they both disappear into a group of civilians and a scattering of green uniforms, mute figures, prey for the god of war. I can’t tell which one is Jesse anymore.
    Everybody rushes over to the windows to see the men board the plane. We can pick out Jesse from the others now, because they’re walking in a line, and he’s shorter than most of the other guys. I see dark clouds moving in from the east and worry that the plane will get caught in a thunderstorm. The plane’s flattened wings lie dormant. It looks unreal, a grounded paper airplane with black slots for windows. The plane’s red lights are blinking. Jesse climbs up the steps and turns one last time to wave toward the windows. He can’t see us but he knows we’re there.
    â€œAy mijito, my son, my son…oh God, my son!” Mom is chanting her own lament.
    She stops abruptly and starts digging into her purse, She grabs my arm, “Run, Teresa!” she yells. “I forgot to give Jesse el cochito.” Jesse’s favorite cookie is wrapped in a paper napkin, gingerbread in the shape of a little pig.
    â€œThe plane’s leaving, Mom. They won’t let me give it to him.” I can’t imagine trying to explain el cochito to the pilot.
    â€œTry, mija, try!” My mother is crying, pleading. There’s nothing left to do but hold tight to el cochito and do a zigzag run up to the man standing at the gate. By the time I get there, everybody’s staring at me.
    I’m catching my breath in gulps. “I have to give something to my brother! He’s on the plane to Vietnam!”
    â€œI’m sorry, but they’ve already boarded the plane.” The man gives me a big smile.
    â€œYou have to give this to my brother. My mom’s going crazy!” I hold the cookie up to him.
    â€œWhat is it?”
    â€œA little pig.”
    â€œA what?”
    â€œA little pig…like a gingerbread man…except it’s a pig. It’s my brother’s favorite cookie. He’s on his way to Vietnam.” I’m talking so fast I can hardly say the words.
    The man looks at me like I’ve lost my mind. “I’ll try,” he says. I hear him on the two-way radio. “I’ve got something for one of the men headed for Nam. Ah, can you send someone out to get it?…Over.”
    He opens the paper napkin and stares at el cochito.
    â€œRoger. What is it? Over.”
    â€œA pig. Over.”
    â€œA what? Over.”
    â€œI mean it’s in the shape of a little pig. It’s a cookie, Ralph, for crying out loud! Ever hear the story of the Gingerbread Man?” I see him smile again. “Anyway, his mom wants him to have it real bad. Over.”
    â€œWho’s the guy? Over.”
    â€œSergeant Jesse Ramirez,” I say.
    â€œA Sergeant Ramirez. Over,” repeats the man.
    â€œRoger, sure for a sarge, I’ll do it. Over and out.”
    We wait a few minutes. My mother is frozen in position, my dad at her side. I can almost hear a drumroll sounding as we wait for an airline stewardess to appear. People are staring at us. The man hands the little pig to the stewardess.
    â€œA little pig,” she says, “How cute!”
    I smile back. “Thank you.”
    The stewardess turns and walks away. A hush falls over the crowd gathered at the windows. We wait until the stewardess boards the airplane and the plane taxis down the runway, lifting itself up into the darkening sky. I hear sobs starting again and people talking. We’re actors on stage, and nobody knows what to do next. Slowly, people start moving away from the windows. I look over at Mom. Her knees bend suddenly, as if she just sat down in a place where there should have been a chair. For the first time in my life, I see my dad pick my mom up in his arms like she’s a little girl.
    Â 
    â€¢ L ATER THAT DAY we laughed