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Question: Do you think that people should always try to overcome
their borders, or at least understand them. If so, what is this
obligation based on. Thanks for your time.
Dagoberto: I just crashed into my own border of intelligence!! A
thick and high wall. I'm leaning here for now. ¿No me pasa
un tragito de aqua, por favor? ¿Pues, no traes vino? Getting
hungry.
Question: Dear Mr. Gilb,
I enjoyed reading the excerpt from "The Magic of Blood"
and I was struck by your answer to the question about the most contested
border:
"... has forced the "mental" borders of both people
whose lives have descended from the Mexican side of it and those
who have not. It has been and still is the most difficult, dangerous
border in the region."
What do you think is the difference in mindset of someone who grew
up on the Mexican side of the border and those who have not? What
is this "mental" border that you speak of? And what happens
to someone who grew up in Mexico and moves to the U.S. side... is
it possible for a Mexican American who has crossed the literal border
to someday cross this mental one, as well? Or is it a border that
they would rather not cross? What does it mean to be an American
to someone who grew up in Mexico?
Dagoberto: Give me a few minutes and a few grad courses and I'll
go to a library and get a PhD and I'll be right back. Hey, I'm thinking
of getting some new wheels. Any suggestions? They all look so much
the same now. And this friend of mine, she asked me to hang a door,
and I'm trying to think how much I should charge her for it. She's
a friend, you know, and she's not rich, but it's, like, her own
house, she owns it, which is cool, but how much should I charge?
A solid wood front door, three hinges, brass door knobs...
Question: Dagoberto — Is there ever a situation where a
border should not be crossed?
Dagoberto: The border probably should not be crossed if there are
a trocas de migra on the other side and you see them and they have
their beams on you.
Question: Do you believe in "borderlessness" —
something universal in the human spirit which can overcome all boundaries?
Or does the material reality of borders that you speak of —
"the real linea" — prevail?
Dagoberto: I think that is called "sleep."
Question: What's your recipe for ceviche tacos with Thai sauce?
Dagoberto: ¿Estas loco, guey? ¿Como supiera yo? Me,
I just buy them over at Z Tejas, down on West 6th, here in Osten.
Question: Many of the stories in your collections are charged
with spiritual undertones without being overtly about spirituality.
Many of your characters seem to be on the edges of precipices at
difficult moments in their lives. Can you highlight the border between
spirituality and "everyday" life in your narratives? What
accounts for the philosophical searching in these works?
Dagoberto: We are in the mystery. All you have to do is realize
that at any moment your heart could stop beating. Or look at it
this way. We know a heart DOES stop beating at some point. It beats
like A, then B, then C, then D, then E, then F. And so on. But there
comes a time that it stops — we see it stop in others, in ones
we love. Between each beat there is an emptiness, a moment when
it may not beat again, and that moment is like the one which precedes
death. So look around. Listen. It is a miracle that the heart of
existence beats. We are on a planet, in outer space. I am answering
these questions in my everyday life. I have a window that lets me
see out it, while very cold air is on the other side of it. I am
writing. Strange strange. Right?
Question: It does sound silly to say "I want world peace,
yada yada," but can you try to answer the question for yourself.
What personal border would you erase?
Dagoberto: The personal border I want to erase is the one from poor
to rich. Hey and what's wrong with yada yada?? Kind of word dismissive
and abusive, aren't we? Kind of insenstive to that expression, taking
it for granted, tossing it off as though it were just some, some...
wait, okay, I too look at the moment I am writing this. Sigh. I
can't joke so much. I say, Wars Are Always Bad, Books Are Always
Good. We are in dangerous, frightening times. When we have to be
very careful who is leading us where. We have to pay attention to
those who want power and ask what it is they want it for. When jobs
are scarce, when people are told to be afraid, told that they must
be prepared to fight, that aggressive froth often spills over, right
into our very own real and mental neighborhood. Ask: Is this a border
that should be erased? Then you live with the decision. We all do.
Want to read more? Check out Dagoberto's
answers to P.O.V.'s 6 questions, the same 6 we asked all of
the featured guests.
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