Today at the dentist, while he was digging into my jaw with his precision instruments making all kinds of disconcerting sounds (not he, the instruments), his assistant apparently was going on a dream vacation to Bavaria.

At least that's what she said while guiding me towards a 3-D-X-ray machine. Three dimensional pictures had to be taken of my lower skull because one of the three root canals in the molar with infection kept bending the precision instruments and the dentist could not figure out why.

Anyway, walking towards the X-Ray room, the assitant asked me. "Where do you come from?" My accent had once again given me away as an immigrant ...

Structure, Quotes, Facts and Anecdotes.

Borders. Prototypes. Families. Presidents.

The attempt of bringing order to a long and complicated story. For me it always starts with transcribing the interviews. In this case several hours. Then picking the quotes I really like and finding an order that makes sense. 

Once I start writing all of this might be thrown out of the window. But it always feels good to have some structure, quotes, facts and anecdotes as back up.

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"It is like having chocolate right in front of you and not being allowed to eat it."

Ramón came to the United States from Michoácan, Mexico 20 years ago. He left his family behind to work, to give his wife and kids back home a roof over their heads, a good education, shoes and clothes to wear. The first three years it was easy for him to cross the border back and forth to visit. Stricter controls made it too dangerous and too expensive. He stopped the crossings and did not see his family for 17 years.

Until he came to friendship park at the US-Mexican border. I saw him there standing at the fence, looking through the tight mesh, speaking softly with his wife, then his daughters who brought husbands he never met and children he never saw. "The tears speak for themselves," daughter Priscilla said.

She stands there like a human statue for grace, strength, beauty and perseverance every weekend. Morning until dusk. Rain or sun. Heat or cold. Living and breathing, but not moving. Not when I wait for the light to change or drive by. Faded red visor, light jacket over a colorful skirt, pink crocs sandals, a bouquet of flowers in her hand and more bouquets in a basket next to her. White lilies mixed with bright red flowers. Always white lilies.  

Her spot is at the end of a freeway ramp. Exhaust fumes, speeding cars and customers in a hurry. I wonder when she eats and drinks. ...

{http://soundcloud.com/soundslikerstin/whose-streets-our-streets}

Standing among thousands of protesters at the Women's March in Downtown LA, I was most happy about seeing so many young faces around me. Young women were climbing fences, bus shelters and flower pots to make their signs seen and voices heard. Their shouts are loud. Their signs are funny and on point. OK, some were gross - like the close up of