#my smuggler's chaos child <3 | Explore Tumblr Posts and Blogs

someonechaotic · 1 month

Text

Ze conner chaos onc agin its aa uhh part 3?????? whyayayayytryeysyayyeeee

Okay, what happened last blog? Well.....

I raised both Zaidan's and Julien's child except I found out that Julien is a very shit father, Haylee grows up happy and Jase grows up unhappy. Sky fishes for some Angelfish whilst Zaidan reaches Level 10 in Gourmet Cooking and whilst Sky gets a new job as an Astronaut and goes into the Interstellar Smuggler branch, we get some Ambrosia, revive Lucas who was previously fucking died. Julien keeps pissing on my fucking living room floor, Haylee got aged up into a teen, Jase is now a child (I aged him up after last chaos blog). Haylee almost died, Lucas almost died again.

Okay, caught up? Good. Now, in this blog is going to be TWICE the chaos, because the previous chaos blog I couldn't post for a week, but I had already done it and couldn't be bothered to update it, so instead, all of its gonna go here!!!!!!

Now be prepared, because I don't know if next week's chaos blog will top this one off....

First week...

After one too many times of Vito possessing Dumbass's gay hearts, I move him back into the household and whip him up a plate of Ambrosia, half as punishment, half because it felt a bit lonely.

Vito lasted.... Surprisingly well, but, well. this sentence is in past tence for a reason....

I also now age up Jase unto a teenager somewhere in this time, I think? i uh idontreemmber

Sky gets to the top of his career and is now constantly on the run from the Space Police

And, on the Saturday after I posted last blog, I had acquired MC Command Center, meaning LARGER HOUSEHOLD WOOOOOOO!!!!-

Well, I had made it larger as a joke, but someone saw it as a grand opportunity to... well.....

:Anne Maria starts playing:

So zaidan, in record time. Gets abducted, impregnated and gives birth. All in the matter of one real-life hour after raising the household cap.

(Also, the way I found out zaidan ws pregnant was so fucking hilarious, I was recording him and possessed Sky having the most fucking terrifying dinner date(?) I've never seen a possessed sim eating a bowl of chili whilst looking totally in love with someone, meanwhile the other sim is so completely fucking confused. And then he did the pregnant animation and i freaked the fuck out)

Possesssed sky says hi ✨️

Meanwhile Sky had his own child, well, Creation. Sky finally build a motherfucking servoooooo woooooo- whom upon entering my household, was assigned traits that practically made Sky the creator of a sociopathic robot I am not joking its the traits I have in my mods pls do-

but don't get too attached because,

One quick change later and Zaidan giving birth, I found out the hard way that I cannot edit my sims normally in a 9 sim household and have to go into the MC Menu and go into CAS from there, because Sky's servo swiftly evaporates from the gace of the earth, never to be seen again.

Zaidan's 5th chikd, Kurtz, grows up to be happy a conspiracy theorist and a pain in the fucking ass, just like his step-father, Dumbass

(Furute me here realising I forgot to mention the 4th, Luz, she's got a mohawk, she's an overachiver, she's a badass lesbian, okay moving on)

Speaking of pain in the asses, Vito gets stuck in a wall, in which case I use this comment to capture some of the most unflattering picture of a sim out there

And speaking of pain in the asses aga- yeah zaidan got pregnant again.... This is his 6th..... This one I named Rez, now this time Dumbass and Zaidan was raising Rez (Which Luz was not happy about as a child)

Thats all of week 1.... Now its on to the real chaos.... the we

Week 2

Week 2, I panic, realising I can't age up my werewolves, Haylee and Lucas up. Why? Because some stupid fucking idiot made them both immortal (me)

So after swiftly resetting and redoing all my werewolves perks (Thank MCCC that MC Command Center has that otherwise I'd of been fucked), I finally age up Haylee and Lucas, who both do not have a job still as I'm writing this.

Meanwhile, Sky has finally finished the Nerd Brain aspiration, meaning he can now Insta-Repair which honestly does fuck all AND INSTA-UPGRADE WOOOOO!!!!- So Sky's been upgrading everything, the stove, the fridge that keeps breaking, the toilets...

And that's when it all went wrong.

As per usual, Zaidan getting abducted, dumbass getting abducted,

Lucas are you sat in your sister's bedroom naked..?

Julien stop pissing on my living room flo-

Al the sudden, one of the toilets in the basement set fire to one of Zaidan's daughters, Luz. I'm panicking, thinking it was that bastard ghost who, idfk fucking planted a grenade in the fucking toilet bowl. I quickly get that sorted out, but I didn't know the true reason.

By now I've finally aged Kurtz into a child, yes it took this long....

But then, Zaidan bursts into flames, where? In the bathroom, it's now the first floor toilet, I'm panicking again, dumbass is there fucking celebrating meanwhile I'm screaming watching the firefighters tumble down through

Meanwhile, Zaidan:

A, Dosnt give 2 flying fucks.

B, stands there and does absolutely nothing

And C, Goes so feral that his eyes go red because he's tense and makes me giggle tf out.

oh and also D, grants me one of the best pictures I've had in ages

I also now have a video of dumbass casually wafting the air like it smells like shit as Lucas is screaming bloody murder beside him pointing at the fire right in front of them.

Ten seconds after that

NOW the UPSTAIRS toilet is on fire, and then another... and then another... and anothe- and zaidans getting fucking abducted again... and another

And then, the first death in a long while. Jase Conner, whom died not only by the toilet's murderous flames, but also by Lucas, who proceeded to only extinguish the fire after he had collapsed on the floor and died.

Considering Jase and Lucas were enemies before, I think Lucas had some intentions...

After which Dumbass and DEATH HIMSELF become BEST FRIENDS FOREVER????

anyway, these pictures later

Possessed sky looking at a burnt toilet

And... this...

Cough

And then, we have our second death, which came a little while after Jase's. Rez, who was still only a child, also died to toilet fire, because when I got him to extinguish himself in the shower, he glitched and stayed on fire, yet everyone else couldn't extinguish him because the game registered him as not on fire. And so, Rez dies to a glitch in the system....

AND THEN, FUCKING JULIEN AND LUCAS GET FUCKING ABDUCTED?

can you, can you guess what happened? I bet you can't, you will never guess, literally never guess, it is impossible to guess, can you guess it? Can you? Can you? Can you guess?

They both come back Fucking PRENGANT

I got some silly pictures of them, this one's just like: - "Julien, I don't fuckin' understand what's going on"

and he's just like - "I've seen this shit before"

I decided to keep only Lucas', who's named Kamila, because I don't trust julien anymore and I do not have the strength to take care of 2 toddlers.

I also, most recently, moved Rez's ghost back into the household.

And I leave off here. The household being Sky, Zaidan, Julien, Haylee, Lucas, Luz, Jurtz, Jase, Rez's Ghost and Kamila, a 10 sim household on it really ever dying, unless there's a really bad toilet fire that happens

Or Jase sets my Fucking STOVE ON FIRE

Some final images that didn't make the cut yk how it be

These two deserve their own segment

– " Zaidan how the fuq you end up like this!?"

– " Maybe the fact you made all the toilets... Flammable..??"

– " ...That was me??"

ok sorry sorry bye bye

Future Future me realising I didn't mention the fact that Vito evaporated mid-way through week 1 (he died from laughter)

4 notes · View notes

zekekaiju · 2 years

Text

Whenever mankind has began a new phase in its journey to traverse the stars we have been plagued by events and accidents beyond our control. In the early days of the journey, we named the cause of this chaos, gremlins. However, we live in the modern age, a good 2000 years since the days of flying primitive airplanes over the English channel and with this advancement one would think that we had moved beyond this superstition. But no, for I have discovered that at least one member of that race of chaos has survived into the golden age of space faring. I, Andrew McGillin present the tales of the gremlin of stars.

Testimonial of Captain Killfear

Smuggler/ former slave trader

Captain Killfear was something of a stereotype, the kind of man who claims to fear nothing but has a hundred and one superstitions. He was average height with brown hair, and eyes that showed intelligence and cunning necessary for a person of his trade. He had a single prosthetic leg and was in rather good shape for someone of his trade. "Oh I remember when I first saw it. I was a first mate at the time. Thought it was a rumor, something you tell the crew to keep them on their toes. We were moving some product, slaves and such. At the last minute the engineer runs in panicked and demanded we let him off. Says he won't be on the ship with that Gremlin, wouldn't stay for anything. Well cold feet ain't uncommon on this kinda voyage, so we get a last minute replacement and head out. A few days later it starts it's "pranks". First, it's little stuff, things go missing, trip hazards left out. Then the thing in the vents escalated. Started leaving crew members personal belongings in a different crew members bunk. The damm thing framed us, we nearly killed each other fights broke out daily." He paused to take a long drink from his flask.

"It was about a month in when we first figured out something was seriously wrong. Authorities got tipped off and found us how we don't know although I have a suspicion. Anyway, we went to fire up the guns, all broken. Wires chewed through, old cans shoved in the front, one was just gone like something ripped it out from outside the hull, our only option was to flee. We tried to warp out of there, dropped out midway to next stop." He gave a mirthless chuckle "Warp engine had a hole the size of my fist right through it. We had to limp our way through miles of dead space. I hadn't seen it yet but I knew it was there. Things broke or went missing, never essential systems but you try going without shower for 3 weeks see how you feel. Nothing stopped it, we even tried the old bean trick. It took the beans and the hand of the guy offering them. Got up one night about a month and a half after it wrecked the drive and that's when I saw it. It was messing around in the armory. Horrible thing it looked like some kind of nightmare creature thin, gangly, hunched over with claw hands holding a frag grenade. I got ready to shoot it, figured I'd finally kill it and be done. Then it spoke, softly like a child trying to whisper. "What makes you think that will work, Killfear?" Didn't even look up from the grenade "The first thing I disabled was your rifles, then your holdout blaster, I'm almost done booby trapping the grenades just in case one of you try something stupid"

I knew in my bones he wasn't lying, but I had to check. I looked my blaster over, the energy chamber was in backwards,and a bunch of scrap shoved down the barrel. I slept with that blaster under my pillow, the gremlin had been in my room. Then he looked at me its eyes glowed like a cats. "You wanna live Killfear, run. The escape pods still work, can't say they will tomorrow." At that the little demon started giggling, which quickly turned into the most horrible laugh I've ever heard. It sounded like someone choking on a fishbone, while shaking a tin can full of marbles, and grinding down sheet metal."

At this the captain visibly shuddered and took another drink from his flask before beginning again "I ain't ashamed to admit I ran, only thing that kept me alive. I heard what happened to them. Without the weapons the cargo broke free and killed the lot of them. The worst thing is it could've killed us at any time, but it didn't it just kinda toyed with us because it could. It enjoyed messing with us."

After that solemn declaration the captain got a faraway look in his eyes that I took for dismissal. Now you might be thinking "Andrew, what does the testimony of one superstitious captain prove? Surely the existence of monsters cannot be proved based on the dubious testimony of one man?" And this is true but have more dear readers. More who have encountered this strange beast that lives in ships. Oh yes this is not the last you will hear of the gremlin of the stars.

#short story #outer space #horror #gremlin #monstersandmadness #slavery mention #gremlin of the stars #scifi #science fiction

3 notes · View notes

chaoticspacefam · 4 years

Text

Character Traits Meme - Aria & Vano

I was tagged by the lovely @mercurypilgrim (thank you! :D)

I can’t remember who I tagged last time so if I’ve tagged you twice and/or you don’t wanna do it again (or the first time), no pressure as always :D but I shall tag @abyssal-space @sentinelapologist @thatmmolesbian @stratosara

I did the Sith twins last time, so it’s Aria and Vano’s turn this time! :D

[WEALTH ]

$ Financial : wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty

(Aria lived hand-to-mouth on the streets for a while during the start of her story, but built it back up after she returned to the Empire. She’s not quite “wealthy” but she did inherit a lot of her father’s things after his death so she’s what I would call “comfortable”.)

✚ Medical : fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged

(Mostly fit, but has extensive scarring from her younger years and some long-term memory damage thanks to a bad glitterstim habit in her younger years.)

✪ Class or Caste : upper / middle / working / transient / slave / unsure

(Was a smuggler for about 5 years after joining up with Merak & Ziri, but after returning to the Sith/Jedi, she worked her way back up again ;))

✔ Education : qualified / unqualified / studying / other

(Graduated from the Sith/Jedi Academy, sooo that counts as qualified right? :P)

✖ Criminal Record : yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / classified

(Uhhhh, yeah. Murdering a lot of Jedi Masters for the Sith, need I say more? She was arrested during the battle of Ilum and spent several years in jail until the first proto-alliance had need of her to help them fight the Revanites. As a show of “good faith” after Yavin, Satele expunges her record and allows her to return to the Sith with Vano, since any further damage Aria could cause has already been done - she’s already been feeding the EmpireJedi intel for years by that point!)

[ FAMILY ]

◒ Children : has a child or children / has no biological children / wants children / has adopted children

(Ziri is SORT OF like an adopted daughter to her. Sort of. But uh, she’s bad with children. Do not leave them with her.)

◑ Relationship with Family : close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased

(An only child (though in the Zephyrverse AU(s) she does have several half-siblings on her father’s side!)

◔ Affiliation : orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent(s) / not applicable

(Killed her mother as part of her Sith trials (something that still haunts her), was raised by her father Darth Noctis, but later on as an adult orphaned when Baras’ assassins kill Noctis. Then adopted into Vano’s family after they eventually marry. What a mouthful huh?)

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES ]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between

(One of the loudest people you will ever meet, Aria has NO filter and almost NEVER keeps her mouth shut. Vano wishes she would, but she does not XD)

♦ dis-organised / organised / in between

(I would call it “organised chaos”, it might seem a mess to someone else, but it’s organised to her. She never sticks to one plan and is always improvising on the fly, but she’s very good at that!)

♦ closed-minded / open-minded / in between

♦ calm / anxious / in between

(This one was difficult for me to decide...she doesn’t really get anxious or panicked so I decided to go with “calm”, though a more accurate description would simply be “doesn’t give a shit”)

♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between

(Unless she’s close to you, she’s NASTY. Not someone you want to spend quality time with.)

♦ cautious / reckless / in between

(When it comes to life-or-death, she’s always cautious. She’ll never risk her life for you, unless your name is Vano or Qyzen. But if death is not on the cards, she will absolutely take risks without balking about it.)

♦ patient / impatient / in between

♦ outspoken / reserved / in between

♦ leader / follower / in between

(She’ll follow Vano and the Ahaszaai twins - and her father when he was alive - but otherwise, don’t tell her what to do. She’ll flip the bird at you.)

♦ empathetic / unempathetic / in between

♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between

♦ traditional / modern / in between

♦ hard-working / lazy / in between

♦ cultured / uncultured / in between

♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown

(loyal to a select group of people (Vano, Saarai, Ni’kasi, Qyzen, her father), everybody else, you may never know if she’ll help you or put a knife in your back.)

♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

(See above)

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality : heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual

❥ Sex : sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favourable / naive and clueless

♥ Romance : romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favourable / naive and/or inexperienced

(Aria is demiromantic so it takes time for her to build that sort of bond with someone, couple that with her father teaching her from a young age that “loving someone was weakness” means she’s not really given it much time of day. Now that he’s not around to keep pushing that viewpoint and she can learn to be more openly affectionate with Vano, though, she’s starting to try.)

❣ Sexually : adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious

(I think this speaks for itself LOL)

⚧ Potential Sexual Partners : male / female / agender / other / none / all

(If it’s human(oid) and it has a pulse, she’ll fuck it. She’s a whore, sir.)

⚧ Potential Romantic Partners : male / female / agender / other / none / all

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(I would hope so, she’s been fighting stuff for a good few decades now!)

≡ Literacy Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(Her dad was a Darth and he intended for her to take his place one day, he made sure she could do everything she needed to be successful.)

✍ Artistic Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(She can dance well enough to not make a fool of herself, and maybe draw some simple things, but not much more than that!)

✂ Technical Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(She ran with smugglers. She’s not as good as they are, but Merak and Ziri taught her how to slice and she can make do in a pinch, though she wouldn’t be able to handle like...advanced encryptions and so on.)

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(She’s always loved a good drink. If she’s not working, you’ll find her at a bar somewhere, drinking the other patrons under the table XD)

☁ Smoking : trying to quit / never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Not nearly as often as she drinks, but yes.)

✿ Other Narcotics : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Oh boy, oh boy, she did a LOT of stims in her younger years while she was smuggling. Hasn’t touched them for a long time as of re-joining the war(s) proper.)

✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Previously a lot. Medical stims were a good, quick substitute if she ran out of other things. Since she’s gone clean, though, she won’t touch them now for fear of relapsing if she does.)

☻ Indulgent Food : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(If Vano wants to go out to eat, she’ll go with her, but it’s not something Aria herself will specifically suggest.)

$ Splurge Spending : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

♣ Gambling : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(On occasion, if she has time.)

[WEALTH ]

$ Financial : wealthy / moderate / poor / in poverty

(Vano’s never had to worry about money, but she’s not rolling in it either. Just comfortable :))

✚ Medical : fit / moderate / sickly / disabled / disadvantaged

(Gal works out, she keeps herself in good condition! :D)

✪ Class or Caste : upper / middle / working / transient / slave / unsure

✔ Education : qualified / unqualified / studying / other

(Graduated from the Sith Academy, so I am once again assuming yes :3)

✖ Criminal Record : yes, for major crimes / yes, for minor crimes / no / classified

[ FAMILY ]

◒ Children : has a child or children / has no biological children / wants children / has adopted children

(Unfortunately for Vano, her wife is not a child-oriented person, so they probably never will. It’s okay though, she’ll find a way to substiturte, probably helps teach younglings at the Enclave or something!)

◑ Relationship with Family : close with sibling(s) / not close with sibling(s) / has no siblings / sibling(s) is deceased

(Vano has a younger brother, Merak, who is my smuggler. While they’re separated for some time, they’re still close - in fact, Merak begins his smuggler career because he wanted to travel the galaxy to try and find Vano again, and he needed money to keep searching so smuggling it was!)

◔ Affiliation : orphaned / adopted / disowned / raised by birth parent(s) / not applicable

(her father was killed when Vitiate’s Inquisitors raided Mirial and he tried to stop them from taking Vano with them to train, but her mother is only very weakly Force sensitive and was left behind. She works in the local Jedi Archives on Mirial, but after the Alliance forms and Vano and Merak reach out to her again, she eventually joins them on Odessen <3)

[ TRAITS + TENDENCIES ]

♦ extroverted / introverted / in between

(Vano is pretty outgoing and friendly, but not very “in your face”. She’s the quiet-but-friendly sort of type.)

♦ dis-organised / organised / in between

♦ closed-minded / open-minded / in between

♦ calm / anxious / in between

(Mostly calm and collected, though post-Valkorion possession, she has moments where she gets anxious. Particularly if she’s alone, or if she can feel he’s about to pop up and start bothering her D:)

♦ disagreeable / agreeable / in between

(The only time she won’t be agreeable is if you’re a dick, basically.)

♦ cautious / reckless / in between

(Not STUPID reckless, but Vano will take calculated risks and/or react first, think about herself later in order to defend someone else.)

♦ patient / impatient / in between

♦ outspoken / reserved / in between

(Mostly pretty reserved and quietly thoughtful, but known to be VERY vocal in terms of defending minorities or other disadvantaged people and so on.)

♦ leader / follower / in between

♦ empathetic / unempathetic / in between

♦ optimistic / pessimistic / in between

♦ traditional / modern / in between

♦ hard-working / lazy / in between

♦ cultured / uncultured / in between

♦ loyal / disloyal / unknown

(Vano’s loyalty knows no bounds. She has a strong moral compass and she won’t continue to follow a complete tyrant (which is why she always kept Baras at arms’ length) - but if you’re generally a good person (even if you make mistakes sometimes - or a lot of times if your name is Aria XD - she will cross the entire damn galaxy for you and do anything for you, no questions asked.)

♦ faithful / unfaithful / unknown

[ SEXUALITY & ROMANTIC INCLINATION ]

❤ Sexuality : heterosexual / homosexual / bisexual / asexual / pansexual

❥ Sex : sex repulsed / sex neutral / sex favourable / naive and clueless

(She likes it. Buuuut she can also go a long while without any and not get twitchy about it, if the world’s on fire or something of that nature, sex goes on the back burner, she can survive without it if necessary.)

♥ Romance : romance repulsed / romance neutral / romance favourable / naive and/or inexperienced

(Yes please! Flowers, chocolates, sunsets and rolling credits, Vano’s a sucker for some good-ol’-fashioned romance.)

❣ Sexually : adventurous / experienced / naive / inexperienced / curious

(I struggled with this one, because Va’s not really “naive” she’s just very...vanilla? XD Willing to try things, but Aria’s definitely more experienced in terms of variety of things than she is, so Ari’s usually the one um, “in charge”. ;))

⚧ Potential Sexual Partners : male / female / agender / other / none / all

⚧ Potential Romantic Partners : male / female / agender / other / none / all

[ ABILITIES ]

☠ Combat Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(She trained with the Sith. She had to be good or she’d be DEAD XD)

≡ Literacy Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(Pretty good, she’s not illiterate, but certainly not as silver-tongued as say, Aria.)

✍ Artistic Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(Decent enough singer and dancer, very good at calligraphy, which is one of her main hobbies when she’s not saving the galaxy from mass-murdering tyrants :’))

✂ Technical Skills : excellent / good / moderate / poor / none

(Decent enough. She can work the Razor’s computer systems, crack some rudimentary passcodes and do other basic things, but she would leave the more advanced slicing and coding to Aria, Vette or her brother, they’re better at it.)

[ HABITS ]

☕ Drinking Alcohol : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Social drinker, so will have some at a party or occasionally one or two while she’s out with Aria, but nowhere near as much as her wife.)

☁ Smoking : trying to quit / never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Va’s a stress-smoker, so the more pressure she’s under and the more worried/frazzled she feels, the more she smokes. If she’s having a pretty “normal” time of things, it’s in moderation.)

✿ Other Narcotics : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

✌ Medicinal Drugs: never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

☻ Indulgent Food : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Sometimes ya just have a shitty day and you have to eat an ENTIRE bag of toffee all to yourself. When you’ve saved the galaxy like 3 times over you deserve that much XD)

$ Splurge Spending : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

♣ Gambling : never / sometimes / frequently / to excess

(Not so keen on it, prefers to watch Aria and her brother whilst they do so she can get them out of trouble if they get into it.)

#swtor #star wars: the old republic #tagged meme #OC meme #swtor oc: vano shenly #swtor oc: aria saal #mirialan #sith warrior #jedi consular #the outlander #art by: moonlitalien & varjopihlaja

8 notes · View notes

solohux · 5 years

Note

Do you have a list of famous/must read fic, since I'm knew to the Fandom I'm just overwhelmed buy the amount of fics lmao. (I've already read Honeycomb, loved it)

Ahhwelcome to the fandom! Gladly! I’ll just clarify my list first, though. If youwant famous, then I suggest just starting at the top of the Most Hits filter of theAO3 tag.

Personally, what I consider famous and what Iconsider a must read are different so I hope that’s okay! This will be alist of my favourite must read fics though it’s by no means exclusiveand it’s just my own personal opinion. Enjoy! (•⊙ω⊙•)

(and apologies to mobile users! I know the Read More function doesn’t always work on mobile and this is a long post!!)

- allthat you love will be carried away by @ceruleancynicHux, sent to retrieve Kylo Ren from the dying Starkiller Base,has lost almost everything, and has little patience or tolerance left foranyone or anything–particularly not Snoke’s pet pseudo-Sith and his amateurtheatrics. But you do the job that is in front of you, to the best of yourability, and you hold on as long as you can.

- WakeUp, Sleeper by @penpenhoorayIt would seem odd that the Resistance should always seem to get theirinformation just a bit faster than the First Order. Of course, General LeiaOrgana knows the risks her mole is taking by sending her life savinginformation. Luke was confident in his padawan’s ability to infiltrate theFirst Order to destroy it from the inside, and he trusted his pupil’sinstincts. And Hux? Well, he’s spent over a decade as a sleeper agent withinthe bowels of the First Order when he feels an awakening in the Force, and he’sdecided it’s time to begin the destruction of the First Order. And he’s goingto bring Ben back to the Light if it’s the last thing he does.

- Reconditioningby @jinxedambitionsBen Solois one of the FBI’s most promising young agents. While he’s had a fewdisciplinary hiccups, he’s intelligent and not afraid to do what needs to bedone. His personal life is a mess, and he may not look like your typicalfederal agent, but he might be the only man for this job. Ben’s looking for apromotion and something like the glory his parents always talked about beforehe was born. The FBI is looking to take down one of the country’s most elusiveprostitution rings, specializing in the types of sex that Ben’s boss has onlyread about in the novel his wife hides under the bed. Ben is going undercoveras a “slave” in order to gather information on the ring’s leaders,purchasing a premium package from the agency. 30 days as a slave to aprofessional Master, and a guaranteed sexual experience of a lifetime. Hegets chosen by Hux, or the General as he insists Ben call him, and he quickly realizesthat no training could have prepared him for this experience. Every day, Ben,or Kylo as he is known at the club, finds out more and more about theorganization, but the more he learns the less he wants to destroy them.

- Tothe Pure by @kdazraelDear siror madam, I am General Hux of the Resurgent-class Star Destroyer Finalizer. Iwas recently strong-armed by a colleague into joining an order of mysticknight-warriors and now they want me take part in their team-building orgies.Please advise.

- Bodies,Can’t You See? by sual When Hux sees the positive result on the pregnancy test scanner, he comes toseveral alarming realizations all at once. One: that his birth control has beentampered with. Two: that the baby is Kylo’s. Three: that this is his truepunishment for Starkiller’s failure. And quietly, in a weak, tiny voice in theback of his mind, the unsettling conclusion that he wants to keep it. He’ll diebefore he lets anyone near his child. He’ll tear apart anyone that tries to getin his way. Even Kylo.

- FollowingOrders by @redcoleSnoke decides that Kylo needs to produce an heir so they can continue hisline and Hux finds himself lined up as the other father.

- Sevento One by @anorlostHux is trying to keep everything under control as he suddenly has seven Rens tocontend with. As he tries to keep them from destroying his ship, he failsto notice that the Knights of Ren have other plans. Plans thatinvolve…cuddling.

- Flickerin the Void by @mothdustmouthHux watched in silence as the light swept over his body. The power stunned him,as did the bright jet of flame as it licked its color into his eyes. This wasnot the calm brightness of last night in the presence of Kylo Ren. This was adifferent sort of light altogether, massive and deadly. It overwhelmed him. Fora moment Hux felt an aching regret deep within himself, the sob of someone heused to be, bubbling up from the cold.

- Progenyby @geishacombGeneralHux has not allowed the Supreme Leader back into his bed since the events ofTLJ. But when he does, the consequences are far graver than either he or Rencould have ever imagined.

- ASong of Crows by Ficlet-Machine (Wordsmith) (WIP)WarchiefHux has just buried his trusted Crow, and, if the Gods still favour him, a newone will find their way to his lands. Hux may be young, but he is a good leaderfor his people. He is ready for the commitment, the responsibility, the changesthat come with a new child of the Gods at his command. The clan needs it, needsit spiritual leader if they are ever to claim ownership of all the lands fromhere to the Core Kingdoms. Raised a warrior, he is more than ready to paint theworld red in honor of his gods. He may, however, not be entirely ready for whathe will feel the first time he meets the haunted and tormented eyes of theyoung Crow called Kylo Ren.

- TheEmperor’s New Consort by @redcoleThe First Order is in control of the Galaxy, in a last ditch effort to savethose who are left, they request negotiations. Only to find that for theResistance to survive they only need to give up one thing small thing - the angry Senator Ben Organa.

- herecomes the first day by @inguThe moment Hux threw himself in front of the blaster shot meant for Kylo Renwas the moment he realised that he had well and truly gone out of his mind.(Or, the one where Hux tries to save the life of Kylo Ren and accidentally saveshimself in the process.)

- volitionby @bygoneboy“Kylo Ren,” Hux says, feeling humiliated as the words leave his mouth, “is notinfatuated with me—” “My apprentice is easily led,” Snoke continues, as if Hux hasn’t spoken. “He isdriven by impulse, emotion. These fixations are distractions to his true path,and they are things I will break in him, when he is ready. In the meantime…” Hewaves a knotted, spider-veined hand toward Hux, as if in dismissal. “You willassist me, in sating his desires.”pre-tfa. hux is issued orders to seduce kylo ren. chaos ensues.

- WeHang Side By Side by @reserveBefore Kylo Ren can complete his training, he must retrieve a Sith artifactfrom the Bothan System. Hux goes along with.

- ExMachina by sualAn AUinspired by Ex Machina where Ben Solo never became Kylo Ren, General Hux is adroid that used to be human, and they might just be what the other needs.Warning for a whole lot of robophilia and cruel and unusual uses for droids.

- FriendsWith Renefits by @moonwalkingcrabThe Rules:1. Just sex, no feelings2. The arrangement lasts as long as is beneficial3. Either party can choose to end the arrangement, no questions asked4. No kissing

- Starfuckerby @agent-nemesisKylo Renfollows a suspicious noise and finds a secret room. When he makes it inside, hecan’t quite believe his eyes.

- AnAlpha’s Pride by @sinceyouaskedmeforataleofHux hasgotten Kylo pregnant, and is infatuated with his changing body. He is sodistracted by the way Kylo’s belly is rounding out beneath his robes and hispectorals are swelling in anticipation of nursing that it takes everything inhim to keep from fucking him right on the bridge.

- Babe,I’m Here Again by @sinceyouaskedmeforataleof (WIP)It’s 2008 and graduate student Armitage Hux has no idea why hes still hangingout with that nerd of a second year Ben Solo. Surely he had better things to dothat sit around planning Dungeons & Dragons adventures with this not-at-all-attractiveAlpha who he definitely doesn’t think about constantly. A tale of illness,heartbreak, unexpected gifts, new beginnings, and rediscovery. Featuring twoidiots who don’t realise how much they love each other until its almost toolate.

- Bittersweetand Strange by @obsessions-and-dreamsIn a castle surrounded by a forest, lived a prince who became a monster.In aquiet village on the other side of the woods lived an unhappy young man withbig dreams.A Kylux Beauty and the Beast AU.

- Sunstrokeby @ballvvasherSupreme Leader Snoke gives Kylo Ren a mission to strengthen the Knights’ of Renhold on the First Order. Set several years before the events of Episode VII.Story contains mpreg, medical torture, and sexual assault.

- TheGuilty Bystander by @cthene “You like this story, don’t you Ren? It’s awfully romantic. Let’s pretend it’strue. Let’s pretend we conspired together to overthrow him.” Hux gets inover his head.

- Psychomachiaby @longstoryshortikilledhimBy thetime the events of SW:TFA unfold, Armitage Hux and Kylo Ren are bitter exes.This is what happened before.

- TheFall by @rosensilenceWhen Resistance smuggler Kylo Ren is captured and brought aboard the Finalizer,General Hux gets more than he was expecting. It isn’t long before thingsare spiraling out of Hux’s usually tight control.

- Unexpectedby @gonna-pop (WIP)After twenty years together, Ben and Armitage have gotten comfortable. Thereare no surprises left in their marriage, and nothing new to learn about eachother. That is, until Armitage unexpectedly goes into heat while they’revacationing on a resort world — and a few days of renewed passion changes thecourse of their lives.

- Convivial Society by @vadiannaLeia doesn’t know what to think when she sees the report about two First Order prisoners taken by surprise. They are suspected First Order officers, but the field can’t verify this.She understands better when General Hux is brought before her, obviously caught in the middle of some rather intense sexual intercourse. She has to ask.

- KnockedUp by @agent-nemesis“Areyou ready?” Kylo asks Hux stupidly, realising the question is moredirected at himself.Hux answers with a cry, and then his panic rises again.Kylo hunches over him, cocooning him protectively. “You can do this,” he whispers. “I know you can do this.”“I can’t,” Hux whimpers, shaking his head. “They’re too big. Ican’t.”“You’re a general of the First Order,” Kylo says softly in his ear. “TheGeneral. The strongest man I know. You can do this.”

- GameOver by limit_breakerLate one night in the officer’s lounge, Kylo Ren challenges General Hux to agame of billiards. That might have been a mistake.

- Pillarsof Salt by @francisthegreatIn whicha young priest learns the meaning of temptation.

- AcademyStyle by @eralkfang“It’s nota question of desire, it’s a question of logistics.”

- SoSoft (And So Terrible) by @theearlgreyalphaGeneral Hux realizes that maybe he’s capable of being a little compassionateafter all, when Kylo Ren winds up in his doorway in the middle of the night.

- Don’tBe Shy (You’ve Been Here Before) by @cut-off-the-grainThe call of the Light, the call of the Dark, have never been so tempting asHux’s hands in his hair as Hux wrangles him this way and that with only thegentlest of touches against his scalp. Hux moves him, moulds him, guides him,in the same exacting manner he does battle plans and blueprints, but with alanguidness which has no place in warfare. Instead of harsh words and reprimandsfor failure there is only Hux whispering “shh, darling, calm down, norush" until Ren is trembling and desperate, his hands and his mind full ofHux, Hux, Hux.

- bodiesagainst by @brawliteGeneral Hux buys himself a present. He ends up sharing said present with theKnights of Ren, who shamelessly barge in on his personal leave time.

- Pasiphaeby @vadiannaWhile depressed one night, Kylo Ren decides to jerk out his sorrows to hisfavorite holoporn vids, starring Major Fuxx and his parade of alien partners. Major Fuxx bears a striking resemblance to General Hux, which is part ofthe appeal, but he suddenly realizes that they may have more in common thantheir looks…

- ForgetHow to Feel by @onewhositswiththeturtlesHux grewup being told that feeling emotions was weak and shameful. If he ever wanted tobe successful he would need to dispel them or use Sinaffec, a drug that mutesemotions. Now Hux has been appointed General of the First Order and relocatedto Starkiller Base. It has been years since he needed Sinaffec to control hisemotions but that changes when Snoke’s apprentice, Kylo Ren, arrives.Ren seemscapable of invoking every emotion in Hux - first irritation but then other,deeper emotions Hux refuses to acknowledge. But when Ren starts talking aboutsoul mates and force bonds, Hux can only deny his feelings for so long untilhis must make a choice: take Sinaffec indefinitely or surrender to his emotionsand see where they lead him.

- MeetMe Halfway by @callmelyss“I don’tdo that,” Hux responds in an undertone before he realizes. He flushes—hard—andscowls. “If that will be all, Supreme Leader…” He turns on his heel withoutwaiting to be dismissed and starts to stalk back the way he came, grateful, asever, for the wide sweep of his greatcoat, the padded shoulders making him feelless—small.He’s halfway out of the room (and what a waste of space) when what he said mustcatch up with Ren: “You mean you…never?”He freezes, every muscle in his body tensing. Won’t say it out loud. No, heemphasizes, clear as he can. Knowing Ren will hear, knowing he will see itregardless, terrible nosy busybody that he is. I haven’t.

- Bombshellby @cosleia Departmentstore employee Ben Organa learns something new about the gorgeous redhead whoalways requests his help selecting lingerie.

- Touchby @kyluxtrashpit When Huxfinds himself falling into bed with Kylo Ren, he wants nothing more than tocompletely take Ren apart. He finds a way to do just that.

- Carpetburns by @ellstra Hux’sfascination with Imperial officers is not only professional. Kylo decides Huxdeserves to relieve the pressure of command for once, and buys an Imperialuniform from Space ebay™.

- In myveins by @ellstra Hux hadbeen hiding his Force-sensitivity for years, using it sparsely and with greatcaution, but it only takes one mission gone wrong and all his carefully builtdefences shatter to protect Kylo. Snoke is always eager to use up all power hecan get.

- Understandingby @onewhositswiththeturtles Throughthe Force Rey accidentally witnesses an intimate moment between her twogreatest enemies, Kylo Ren and General Hux. Despite her hatred towards the twomen for what they’ve done to the Resistance, Rey is forced to learn andunderstand that everyone is fighting for something.

- LifeThrough Glass by @moonwalkingcrab Hux’s life is fairly simple, he has his work, he has his cat, and he has hisflat. Now it seems he has a new neighbour. With windows so close together it’seasy to fall into the world of Kylo Ren.

-and lead us not into temptation by @liesmythHux looks him up and down, this Resistance golden boy, gangly and ungraceful and so appallingly soft. Takes a drag of his cigarette. “You’re weak,” he says.Solo looks up at him. “Please.” He draws in a long, broken breath. “Please.” Or: General Hux thinks about Ben Solo a lot more than he probably should.

- The Interrogation Game by @jinxedambitions Kylo Ren finds himself strapped to his own interrogation table, getting a lesson from General Hux. Pain isn’t the only interrogation technique, perhaps not even the most effective. Strapped down with nowhere to go, Kylo is at Hux’s mercy. If he just tells Hux what he wants to hear, he might find relief from this overwhelming pleasure…but it isn’t that simple.

- Forceless by @sinningsquire Ren has lost the one thing that defined him from before he was even born. Somehow this results in a mad dash through the Galaxy, with more bloodshed that two men should be able to bring on, and with one happy ending under a starry canopy of a summer night.

- Like a Vicious Dove by @thevulcanpresidentIt has been a year since Hux destroyed Snoke and took the galaxy for his own, a year since Kylo Ren pledged his service to the new emperor. When Hux gets kidnapped, he trusts his knight to rescue him.

- Rule by @thez1337After the events on the rebel base, and the escape of some of the highest commanding rebel leaders, Kylo Ren takes Snokes place as head of the First Order. General Hux seeths, and his own secret ambition at ruling the Galaxy isn’t quite so secret.

- All’s Fair… by @nonsensicalsoliloquy "You missed me.“ Hux frowned, “I did not miss you, Ren. I didn’t miss your arrogance, petulance, or destruction of my ship anymore than you missed me and my refusal to cow to your whims.“ Ren only leaned in closer, his frustratingly large body nearly flush with Hux’s slender one. "What makes you think I didn’t miss you?”OR: The tension’s been building and building seemingly every day since the moment they met, and it appeared as if Ren had decided it was time it ended.

- Take Me or Leave Me by kyluxicle (LadyCamillus), oorsprong When Kylo Ren returns from training with Leader Snoke, he comes back more collected and focused. While Hux appreciates this newfound control, he misses the passion that Ren used to have—especially towards him. In attempt to get Ren back into his bed, Hux sets his sights on a lesser officer in order to bring out Ren’s jealousy. Either Ren will snap out of this cold persona and take him back, or Hux will have to settle for less.

- Politics by @sithofrenHux has an unusual request for his birthday. He wants to ‘capture’ Senator Organa-Solo. Kylo Ren agrees.

- Game Over by @onewhositswiththeturtlesHux has a combat simulation program developed for all First Order personnel and has a sim of himself as the final boss. He congratulates himself when the program becomes a massive success, unaware of the fact that hackers have changed the coding to dress his sim in increasingly scandalous outfits. When Hux finds out that Ren is spending a large amount of time in the sim he gets suspicious and pulls up the video logs of Ren’s sessions, only to realize that Ren is seeking much more than combat training from Hux’s sim. After some thought and planning, Hux decides to give Ren the real thing.

- The Lingerie Incident by @thesunandoceanblue Hux doesn’t want to be thinking of Leia while he’s tugging down his pants. Instead he thinks of Kylo, and how he’d react to this. He’d be terribly jealous. His secret revealed. To his mother of all people. Hux grimaces in amusement as he shimmies his pants down with one hand, the other holding his coat.

- Fractured by @kyluxtrashpitWhen Kylo returns from a meeting with his master broken and wrong, it becomes clear that Snoke has gone too far. Hux is left to not only pick up the pieces, but to put them back together again while considering the past and the future.

- Generosity by orphan_account Dressed down to his undershirt – which had become far too crinkled for his taste – Hux sported his uniform pants, minus the boots, however, left in his warm, black bed socks (He doesn’t like cold, okay?). And he also had his tongue buried in Kylo Ren’s ass.

- Sweet Redolence by @jakathineWhat happens when the desire to best your opponent turns into a desire to bed them instead…and then fate pushes you together rather Forcefully.

- A Vulpine by any other Name by levitheking & @omega-hux Hux wasn’t fully Human, his Vulpine Heritage plain as day with his ears and tail. His new co-commander turns out to be a Vulpine as well. Tensions are high and compromises must be made. Until Hux comes up with his most devious plan yet.

- My Own Breath by @saltandlimesHux has only ever caught glimpses of Kylo Ren’s face, short moments when the knight’s helmet is off. After an incident in the hangar, he realizes he needs to see more.

- Matches to Paper Dolls by @ctheneOn a mission from Supreme Leader Snoke to recover a lost Jedi artifact from the Smuggler’s Moon of Nar Shaddaa, Kylo Ren and General Hux are accidentally drugged. In addition to spice, it seems, the Hutt crime lord Grakkus was also a purveyor of powerful black market aphrodisiacs. With no choice but to copulate immediately, Hux must talk a terrified virgin Ren through the whole unpleasant, humiliating process. Upon returning to the Finalizer, Hux is ready to pretend nothing happened. Ren, however, deeply affected by Hux’s kindness to him throughout the ordeal, can’t put the experience behind him so easily.

- Who’s Your Master? by @groffictionHux murmured softly, “You don’t need punishment tonight, Ren. You need rest.”“But, I want… I want this… need this,” Kylo protested weakly, reaching around to nuzzle at Hux’s boots.

- tender is the night lying by your side by @thethespacecoyote Emperor Hux misses his mate dearly, even when he’s away clinching their reign. Thankfully, an alpha as powerful as Kylo Ren can overcome even the furthest reaches of the galaxy to tend to his omega’s desires.

- Forced Perspective by @gamebird Kylo Ren and Hux are stranded on a jungle world after negotiations go bad. Kylo is badly wounded, his life resting in Hux’s treacherous hands. His take on the reasons for his survival are very different from Hux’s.

- Chosen Ones by @babbushkaIn the middle of the night memories come rushing back, thankfully Hux and Kylo have each other to hold when they do.

- Zip it by @centurytwitch Hux feels that his contributions to the First Order are worthy of an award. He’s not expecting a new rank, though that would be nice. What he really wants is a new uniform to acknowledge the mental wear and tear he endures, the duty he fulfills every cycle.Kylo thinks otherwise.

- Putting you Back Together but Betterby @techiehuxThere is value to Hux yet, besides being a minor nuisance and occasional source of entertainment. With a few… improvements, he could be ferocious on the battlefield, commanding respect and demanding it in turn.

- No Rest for the Wicked by @embershxKylo sees Hux sleeping in their bed and can’t help himself.

- The Escape of the Fox by @theweddingofthefoxes After the First Order is defeated and Rey becomes Leia’s heir, Kylo Ren and General Hux are both fugitives, and they haven’t seen one another in years. Ren settles into a hermetic existence selling kyber, but when he learns Hux is still alive, he goes to find him under the pretense of staging a coup. But there’s another reason he wants to see Hux again….

I’m going to leave it there! I’ve been at this list on-and-off for about 2 hours, looking through my bookmarks and favourites, and there are still a tonne more but this felt enough to satiate you, anon! Remember, this list is just my personal recommendation of what I believe are must-read fics for a newcomer! They’re fun, they’re all written brilliantly and all amazingly represent the two space nerds that we love!

I’ll make a part 2 if anyone is interested but for now, happy reading!!! ❤️

#kylux #fic rec #remember to read the tags beforehand!#there's a hell of a variety in here

267 notes · View notes

socialjusticeartshare · 3 years

Text

‘I Have No Idea Where My Daughter Is’: Migrant Parents Are Desperate for News

With a record 20,000 migrant children in shelters and detention facilities, many parents have waited weeks to learn what happened to their children after they crossed the border.

When Maria Ana Mendez left Honduras a decade ago to earn money in the United States, her daughter Cindy was still in pigtails and playing with dolls.

But settled now with a job and an apartment in upstate New York, Ms. Mendez was ready to bring Cindy to live with her. Because she is still undocumented and could not legally bring her into the country, she paid a guide $8,000 in February to take Cindy, now 16, across thousands of miles to the doorstep of the United States.

Three weeks later, Ms. Mendez heard from her daughter for the first time: She had crossed the Rio Grande on a raft and was being held in a temporary U.S. border camp in Donna, Texas. She had not showered in five days, and was sleeping on the ground. She did not feel well.

Days without news turned into weeks of anguish as Ms. Mendez made repeated phone calls to a U.S. government hotline to learn her daughter’s whereabouts. On April 3, Cindy was able to call — from a hospital in San Diego. She was “very sick” with Covid-19, she told her mother.

“I can’t take this anymore,” said Ms. Mendez, who booked a flight to San Diego.

A surge of arrivals on the border has put nearly 20,000 migrant children in government custody — the largest number in recent memory — creating chaos and confusion as immigration authorities scramble to care for them, contact their parents and process them for release.

The Biden administration has rushed to open emergency intake sites at convention centers in San Diego and Dallas, a coliseum and expo center in San Antonio, a former oil camp in Midland, Texas, and at the Army base at Fort Bliss, Texas. Other sites, including a convention center in Long Beach, Calif., are expected to accommodate children soon.

But the government is still struggling to bring in people to staff them, and immigrant parents across the country, who often have no idea what happened to their children after they entered the United States, are growing increasingly desperate.

Some children have gone weeks or longer without being able to contact their parents.

In Austin, Texas, a Honduran woman is waiting for news of her two children, 6 and 9, who were brought to the border in March by a family member but then separated from the adult relative and taken to an unknown destination.

A Honduran father said he had been told that his 14-year-old son, who arrived in March, is one of 2,000 migrant boys being housed at the convention center in Dallas. But he has yet to speak with him.

Keep up with the new Washington — get live updates on politics.

A Guatemalan woman living in Iowa City has filled out two packages of paperwork to try to reunite with her 16-year-old sister, who has been in government custody since crossing the border on March 4. She recently learned that the teenager had been moved from a shelter in Texas to another in Pennsylvania.

“I am very worried about her,” said the woman, Juana Cuyuch Brito, 32. “I don’t know why they transferred her or what is going on.”

Lidia Cuyuch Brito, the 16-year-old sister of Juana Cuyuch Brito, photographed in Guatemala before leaving for the United States.

The problem appears to be one of sheer numbers, as the new administration struggles to hire enough people to staff the temporary shelters, make contact with parents and verify that children can be safely released to them.

Administration officials say they are doing the best they can to handle the latest rush to the border, trying to provide safe housing and secure placements for children who have already faced substantial dangers traveling through Mexico and crossing the border, often with no adult guardian.

“I can say quite clearly: Don’t come over,” Mr. Biden said last month. “Don’t leave your town or city or community.”

Yet hundreds of children continue to be intercepted and transported to processing centers each day. In the Rio Grande Valley of Texas, border facilities were operating at 743 percent capacity last month. A tent structure in Donna was at 1,707 percent capacity.

About half the children arriving at the border are coming to reunify with a parent, like Ms. Mendez, who has been residing in the United States for many years.

Often the children were raised by grandmothers and other close relatives who are now aging and can no longer care for them. Like their parents, many are teenagers who do not see a future in their home countries.

Because the parents lack legal status or have asylum cases stuck in immigration court backlogs, most are unable to sponsor their children to immigrate legally to the United States; they resort to smuggling networks to transport them.

Nearly 16,500 migrant teenagers and children who crossed the border without a parent are being housed in Department of Health and Human Services facilities until they have met the requirements for release. Roughly 4,000 more are stranded in Border Patrol stations waiting for beds in those shelters to open.

The emergency facilities provide clean sleeping quarters, meals, toiletries, laundry and access to medical care, including coronavirus screening. Services are provided by a combination of contractors and federal staff.

But there is still a severe shortage of case managers to handle the bureaucracy. It is these social workers who contact parents and request documents to start the process of releasing their children to them.

Once a parent has submitted the paperwork and passed a background check, the child’s placement must be approved by a specially designated officer, to ensure that a child will be safe.

The dearth of staff at every level, according to child-welfare experts, is one of the main reasons that, on average, only about 300 minors a day are being released, creating a frantic race for new bed space as more children cross the border.

Migrant children last month in a pod at the U.S. Customs and Border Protection facility in Donna, Texas, the main detention center for unaccompanied children in the Rio Grande Valley.Pool photo by Dario Lopez-Mills

Leecia Welch, a lawyer whose team interviewed about 20 children in several intake facilities in Texas on March 29 and 30, said none of the children had been assigned a case manager by that time.

The lawyers found that many children were waiting several weeks before being permitted to speak with family members.

“What these kids want first and foremost is to be reunited with their families,” Ms. Welch said. “They were desperate to hear their parents’ voices.”

One child she interviewed in Dallas, she said, teared up as he told her that he had gone three months without contact with his family and that he had made his first call the day before.

Many parents already had undergone weeks of anxiety as their children undertook the dangerous journey through Mexico, often in the hands of smugglers. Customs and Border Protection officials this week released a video of a sobbing 10-year-old Nicaraguan boy who had been found wandering in a remote area of Texas after he was abandoned by the group he was traveling with.

“The inhumane way smugglers abuse children while profiting off parents’ desperation is criminal and morally reprehensible,” the secretary of homeland security, Alejandro N. Mayorkas, said in a statement in March. “Just this month, a young girl died by drowning, a 6-month-old was thrown into the river, and two young children were dropped from a wall and left in the desert alone.”

Since arriving in the United States a decade ago, Ms. Mendez, 42, has juggled jobs as a housekeeper, a packer at a seafood processing plant and a chef’s assistant at a diner, sending $200 to $300 every two weeks back to her family.

Last year, Ms. Mendez watched her daughter graduate from high school by video. Cindy wanted to fulfill her dream of becoming a computer programmer, and the time to do that was now, she said.

As she headed north toward the border, Cindy checked in with her mother every few days.

To prepare for her arrival, Ms. Mendez painted her room pink, furnishing it with a new bed and a colorful princess spread. She hung helium balloons to make it festive.

Cindy reached Texas in early March and was intercepted by the Border Patrol, which took her to a processing center.

After an initial phone call from her daughter, Ms. Mendez waited anxiously for more news.

But weeks went by, and every time Ms. Mendez phoned a call center at the Office of Refugee Resettlement, which is responsible for sheltering migrant children, she heard that her daughter’s case was “pending.”

“I have no idea where my daughter is,” Ms. Mendez said in an interview on March 26. “No one is telling me anything at all.”

Ms. Mendez hired a guide to bring Cindy from Guatemala, entering the United States via the Rio Grande.Adrees Latif/Reuters

The agency has not responded to questions about staffing and reunification procedures, though it has said generally that children are being carefully accounted for and put in touch with their parents as quickly as possible. Rushing the process risks the possibility of releasing children into unsafe conditions, officials say.

When Ms. Mendez could learn nothing of her daughter’s whereabouts, she contacted an immigration lawyer, Kate Lincoln-Goldfinch, who filed a complaint with the inspector general for the Department of Health and Human Services. The handling of Cindy’s case, it said, represented a “gross deviation” from the Biden administration’s stated policy of reuniting unaccompanied minors with their parents as swiftly as possible.

“We fear that the child has either been lost or unaccounted for by the agency,” the letter concluded.

Nothing happened.

Then, last Saturday, Ms. Mendez’s cellphone buzzed. It was Cindy.

“Mami, I am in the hospital in San Diego. I have Covid,” she told her mother, her voice feeble.

She said that she had been staying at the convention center in San Diego before she began feeling very sick and was transferred by ambulance to the hospital.

“How could they leave her alone in the hospital and not advise me?” Ms. Mendez said.

It took a day before she would receive an update about her child’s condition. Ms. Lincoln-Goldfinch called the hospital, but a charge nurse and social worker initially refused to release any information, referring her to the Border Patrol, she said.

In an interview from the hospital on Monday, Cindy said she had been isolating in a room at the convention center, which holds about 1,400 girls, with 20 others who had tested positive for the coronavirus.

Finally, on Tuesday, Ms. Mendez learned that Cindy had recovered from her illness and would be discharged soon. The government had approved her release from custody, she was told.

Ms. Mendez immediately flew to San Diego, and went straight from the airport to the convention center late on Wednesday.

Mother and daughter emerged 15 minutes later, holding each other in tears.

Ariana Drehsler for The New York Times

Article Source

#migrant parents #missing children #separated families

0 notes

thisweekingundamwing · 6 years

Text

This Week in Gundam Wing: November 19th - 25th

Greetings Fandom!

Tons of great stuff for you to check out this week, make sure you leave the creators some love!

AO3 DID act up some this week when I was working on the update, so please don’t hesitate to speak up if something is missing! I’m more than happy to revise the list, and I promise it wasn’t intentional!

Don’t forget to submit or tag us in all your neat stuff guys! It really helps compile the update every week!

Keep up the great work!

-Mod CB

Below the cut!

Fanfiction:

(please take note of any warnings within the fics themselves, do not rely on this list as exhaustive)

@amberlyinviolet, @yourbloodlikewine

In This Light, Chapter 10

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12386715/chapters/29284572

Duo x OC, Trowa x OC, Solo x OC. AU, child abuse mention, Sexual Assault Mention, homophobic parents, Re-Written Characters, Drug Use, Violence, off screen murder

Duo spent the last semester working in his older brother's coffee shop. He's resigned himself to a boring spring when a stranger appears, shaking up his entire life.Eli left home last fall, choosing to spend the last six months living out of his van on his travels from the Midwest to the East Coast. By the time he arrives at Ink's, the novelty of traveling alone has started to wear off. Still, the last thing he's expecting is to meet someone who's going to change all that for him

@anaranesindanarie

Magic, Mortals, and Gundam Gods, Chapter 3

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12667185/chapters/29141973

Pairings to be decided

Magic, Gods, Poachers, AU, Alternate Universe, Alternate Universe- Gundam Wing, Alternate Universe - Reincarnation, Alternate Universe- Avatars

In the legends of the Five Gods, it is said that the second God, Deathscythe, was very protective of the other four and would do anything to keep them alive. He would fight entire wars, taking hit after hit until he couldn’t anymore, until he used every drop of magic that he had to keep them safe. He would fade away and the others would follow. Their magic would then find its way to those it deemed worthy and the cycle would start again. And now… The Five Gods have been reborn into a world full of magic and war.

Unnatural November submission

Awareness_bringer

Odin Lowe Junior

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12815355

Alternate Universe - Canon Divergence, challenge story

The boy who would've been called Heero Yuy is found by OZ. How will he move forward in such an enviroment? You decide. Challenge story.

@chronicwhimsy

Spirits

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12769878

2x5

Unnatural November submission, ghost story, gift fic for @thelaughingstar

Everyone knows about Duo's ghosts. He collects them. But when he collects them, they feel lighter somehow.Some ghosts stay longer than others.

Darkpanthress

No Other Way

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/8219920/1/No-Other-Way

There have been a lot of clichéd stories. This is picking some clichés and just dumping them into a new version of the story. Heero needs an out from a difficult situation with Relena, and the out seems to be a fake engagement!

@duointherain

Blood on the Brain, Chapter 2

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12756882/chapters/29131014

1x2

It's wartime. Duo and Heero have just gotten together and Heero goes off on a mission that doesn't go well. Relena manages to message Duo, asking him to help Heero. Combat and medical intervention ensue.

Not Quite Single, Chapter 4

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12786444/chapters/29230788

GW x Captain America crossover

1x2, Steve x Bucky, graphic descriptions of violence

It's nearly a hundred years after the wars. Tech has kept all the boys healthy and young. While on a salvage mission, Duo recovers Steve Rogers. James Barnes has been Heero's colleague for over twenty years. There are a lot of misunderstandings. The fork in chapter two made me laugh. :)

@gw-ficrecfriday

Double or Nothing

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12806889

4xD, old fic, not quite explicit

Games are played to be won, not lost. (Quatre, Dorothy, and...sexy chess?)

Jonginwankenobi

Amour et Boules de Neiges

https://www.fanfiction.net/s/12717364/1/Amour-et-Boules-de-Neiges

En vacances dans les Alpes françaises, Heero et sa soeur Kari vont faire une rencontre qu'ils ne seront pas prêts d'oublier. UA publication hebdomadaire

@kangofu-cb

Don’t You Know, Chapter 1

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12821766/chapters/29271852

2x5, background 1x3, fluff, cop drama, FBI agents, angsty backstory but the fic is fluff, AU - Modern Setting

Cop!Duo meets SpecialAgent!Wufei in this fluffy rom-com.

Birthday fic for @chronicwhimsy

East of Eden, Chapter 5

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12591796/chapters/29188620

2x4x5, background 1x3, Alternate Universe - Supernatural Elements, Fae & Fairies, Vampires, Were-Creatures, Blood and Violence, Sex, Magic, Angst, Death, Canon-Typical Violence

Wufei needs help to save his clan from a mysterious enemy. He leaves, looking for help from a near-mythical figure: The God of Death. He may, however, get more than he bargained for...

Lil1337

Gundam Wing Month 2017, Chapter 25

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12599464/chapters/29279403

Multiple pairings and settings - please note chapter headings for specific relationships and tags

A collection of drabbles and short fics posted one a day for the month of November in celebration of Gundam Wing Month.

LittleMouse

Warcraft, Chapter 5

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12429339/chapters/29254980

AU, fantasy

Alternate Fantasy World - A world where people have ‘Talents’ that allow them to control certain elements. Different Talents can ‘Join’ to become a specific entity - some can heal, some can repair damage to land and buildings, some are weapons. The Talents you ‘Join’ with are called your Others. The perfect Joining is of five separate Talents. One lonely Fire Talent far to the North has given up waiting for his Others - good thing they haven’t stopped looking for him.

What Dreams May Come, Chapter 2

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12772926/chapters/29254422

2x5, 1x3x4, flashback, non-con touching, violence, threesome

This is a sequel to ‘Perchance to Dream’, and I suggest reading it first. Otherwise, some things won’t make sense. Wufei and Duo are dealing with the effects of their last mission together, the oddity of a new relationship, and the threat that the war will separate them any minute.

Maldoror_Chant

Freeport, Chapter 11

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12654255/chapters/29222340

2x5. long ass fic ahoy, socio-politics, with violence and hot guys, Blood and Violence, no EW, Slow Burn, Case Fic

Freeport colony: a notorious den of pirates, smugglers and thieves. Wufei persuades one of its denizens, his one-time ally Duo, to help him catch a killer hiding there. Agent Chang thinks he knows what to expect from this case, from Freeport and from Duo Maxwell. He couldn't be more wrong.

The Source of all Things, Chapter 12

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12121344/chapters/29139225

3x4, eventual 2x5, eventual 1x2x5. Science Fiction, Fantasy, Plot Twists, fairly graphic depiction of sex, Mild description of self-harm, Mathematical Magic, weird science, crones - Freeform, Magic and Technology brawling and eventually screwing, Eventual Threesome, Kinda, Insanity of arcane origin, The universe is a pile of marbles and other dubious allegories

Center, a planet where magic and technology blend. Or more accurately, fight tooth and nail. A planet of Sources, holes in our boring dimension letting through arcane power, chaos and pseudo-deities. In this hot-house of myths and very real dangers, Trowa and Quatre find a mysterious man at the end of a shamanic voyage. Portents suggest this Heero Yuy is crucial to Center’s survival. He’s important enough to have some interesting enemies after him, at any rate: a devious killer and thief called ‘Shinigami’, and a very irate Dragon. Beyond them looms an even greater threat. Indeed, the greatest of them all.

50 Ways to Leave Your Lover

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12771627/chapters/29140038

1x2, fluff and humor, post canon, slightly stalkerish Relena, get together

Duo was well placed to know that Heero was a deadly cold hard-ass ex-terrorist with an attitude, so really, how hard could it be to have a girl not fall for the prickly bastard?Answer: Pretty damn difficult, actually.

@noirangetrois

Of the Sea

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12749670/chapters/29199138

1x2, 4xC, Aro!Trowa, otp, Yaoi, Eventual Smut, fairytale my way, mermaid!au, Meroctopus!Dorothy

Heero Yuy will soon be reaching the age of majority, at which time he will ascend the throne of Wingaria. Before such time, he must needs choose a bride. But what if there are no good choices? What if someone else has captured his heart?

@remsyk-blog

Queen’s Pleasure

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12823785

2x5xR, Smut, to the nth degree, Threesome, PWP, NSFW, This relationship tag doesn't exist, Bossy!Relena, Car Sex, Technically Limo

Charity balls have a way of pushing Relena to her limits. Luckily, she has her soldiers to help her unwind, and whatever the Queen wants, the Queen gets.

Signifying_nothing

A Room in Luxembourg

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12788985

OT5

soft, introspective duo, Post Warcoming home, wound mentions, Acid Burns, Scalping, Disabled Character (not sure that really applies but just in case)

Let it never be said that Duo Maxwell did not understand tragedy. His entire fucking life had been a tragedy, thank you very much: could have been written by the Willy Shakes himself. Boy is an orphan, boy is taken in by a church, boy is brought back to the church several times, boy tries to save church only to have church blown up by The Man, boy becomes vigilante God of Death, et fin.

Sinspiration

Not Just a Vacation, Chapter 6

http://archiveofourown.org/works/11512800/chapters/29262546

5xOC, 1x2, 1x2x5, Threesome - M/M/M, Sexual Assault, that's the OMC part, Slow Burn, the embryonic stages of a relationship, this is being unburied and reposted, Autism Spectrum, Autistic Heero Yuy

Duo and Heero have to go undercover at a private high school to get close to the son of Archie Bravewater, a man who might have major ties to an underground slave-ring the Preventors have been trying to destroy for months.They're expecting Trowa to be their third and back-up reserve. But something comes up in Australia that he can't leave. They get Wufei instead.During the course of the mission the three not only navigate their assignment, but their developing friendships and, eventually, even deeper feelings.

Sunhawk16 (Mod note: YES THIS IS THE INFAMOUS SUNHAWK)

The Last Godchild

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12826722

1x2, 3x4, 5xS

The final part of the GodChild universe. The title, I think says it all. Death fic, but not in a sad way, I don't think. Christmas fic for 2016, originally posted in Livejournal.

Sylvieforaday

They Say it was a Concussion, Chapter 13

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12347688/chapters/29122869

2x6. AU. Surgeon Zechs. Dancer Duo.

Duo takes a spill and Zechs is just what the doctor ordered.

Moving On, Chapter 5

http://archiveofourown.org/works/12529256/chapters/29185731

2x5. Angst, Hurt/Comfort, eventual smut, mention of past sexual abuse, past character death

Duo is trying to find his place in his own world without his crutch - Heero Yuy.

TheManwell

May Demons Rest, Chapter 37 and 38 (Now Complete!)

http://archiveofourown.org/works/10944786/chapters/29218944

2x3, post-canon, bad language, underage drinking, suicidal thoughts

A re-write of my 2004 fanfic "Shinigami Sleeps" - To find and free Duo from his demons, Trowa leaves his uneventful life at the circus for the mean streets of an obscure colony in L2.

@vegalume

Afterthoughts of Discourse, Chapter 9

http://archiveofourown.org/works/4095778/chapters/29229750

1x2, 2xH, 1xOC, Rated for non-graphic adult situations, and language. Please pay attention to the tags and warnings posted. Yaoi, Het, ooc, Angst, Mpreg

After making a terrible mistake, Duo must now search for the one person he loves most, in hopes of gaining forgiveness. But when they are reunited will Duo be too late?

Snippets

@gw-ficrecfriday

https://gw-ficrecfriday.tumblr.com/post/167671703046/oh-hey-i-made-myself-do-something

@lifeaftermeteor

https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/167886171231/winner-family-compound-l4-v05001-207-september-15

@softnocturne

https://softnocturne.tumblr.com/post/167678682350/sunday-snippet

@vegalume

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167869352305/snippet-saturday

Fanart

@anaranesindanarie

https://anaranesindanarie.tumblr.com/post/167703171204/for-those-curious-this-is-what-the-boys-currently

Dolldivine renditions of the pilots for her fic Magic, Mortals, and Gundam Gods

@downwarddnaspiral

@http://downwarddnaspiral.tumblr.com/post/167685943381/for-ahsimwithsake-and-laurathia-good-luck

Heero and Quatre, for @ahsimwithsake and @laurathia

@maevemauvaise

http://maevemauvaise.tumblr.com/post/167862882986/chronicwhimsy-a-very-very-happy-birthday-to-you

Duo as a merman for @chronicwhimsy‘s mermaid AU and birthday

@noelleian

http://noelleian.tumblr.com/post/167890294147/because-the-world-needs-more-pilots-drawn-as-cats

The pilots drawn as cats

@sawyer-sweet

https://sawyer-sweet.tumblr.com/post/167779922327/more-gundam-wing-fun-this-time-with-heero-yuy-at

Heero, injured

@sovaz

https://sovaz.tumblr.com/post/167752416995/for-chronicwhimsy-happy-birthday

2x5 Birthday gift art for @chronicwhimsy

@thelaughingstar

http://thelaughingstar.tumblr.com/post/167677965409/wufeis-voice-was-low-and-gentle-as-he-spoke

Fanart for @chronicwhimsy‘s fic Spirits. 2x5. Ghost Meilan

@vegalume

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167620583265/this-didnt-turn-out-like-i-had-planned-and-no

13x1, vaguely NSFWish

@zer0-system

https://zer0-system.tumblr.com/post/167680438035/a-little-preview-of-what-ive-been-doing-all-this

Heero, injured

Meta/Headcanons

Gundam Wing Podcast featuring @lelola http://lelola.tumblr.com/post/167842591475/so-my-friend-jesse-over-at-the-zannen-canada

Gundam Wing social media accounts by @lifeaftermeteor https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/167681255679/what-did-i-do-instead-of-writing-for

Thoughts on Relena and her adopted father by @lelola http://lelola.tumblr.com/post/167877077840/im-curious-re-how-relenas-adoptive-father-is

Heero headcanon by @lifeaftermeteor https://lifeaftermeteor.tumblr.com/post/167851094207

Gundam Wing pictures with Invader Zim quotes by @vegalume

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167803721820/gundam-wing-pics-with-invader-zim-quotes-this-is

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167864844340/vegalume-gundam-wing-pics-with-invader-zim-quotes

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167829189530/gundam-wing-pics-with-invader-zim-quotes-set-3

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167855601155/gundam-wing-pics-with-invader-zip-quotes-set-4

http://vegalume.tumblr.com/post/167876283740/gundam-wing-pics-with-invader-zim-quotes-set-5

Meta on the pilots and close range killing, initiated by @the-indomitable-bhg https://noirangetrois.tumblr.com/post/167819314177/the-indomitable-bhg-gundamwing-ellesmith

Meta on the pilots and drinking, initiated by @fadedsepiascribbles https://fadedsepiascribbles.tumblr.com/post/167815528842/okay-but-ive-never-understood-this-idea-that

Meta on Wufei’s motivations for Endless Waltz, initiated by @lelola https://noirangetrois.tumblr.com/post/167776717587/lelola-wu-fei-is-so-done-with-everyone-he

I honestly don’t know what to even say about this. Gundams and babies and how Wufei entered the world and some disturbing cakes https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/167761431722/lbro009-helmistress-the-indomitable-bhg

Discussion of canon support for a 1x3 ship, by @cinderellaincombatboots https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/167760960457/cinderellaincombatboots-bro-fist-01-and-03

Headcanon for why Wing Zero has wings by @the-indomitable-bhg https://the-indomitable-bhg.tumblr.com/post/167682256482/the-notorious-bhg-wing-zero-appears-endless

Meta/headcanon regarding Wufei’s motivations and thoughts on using mobile suits in war, initiated by @noirangetrois https://gw-ficrecfriday.tumblr.com/post/167702938041/claraxbarton-cosmostar-noirangetrois

Meta/headcanon regarding Duo and Hilde’s relationship and colony life outside of war https://kangofu-cb.tumblr.com/post/167685479167/simulacraryn-kangofu-cb-noirangetrois

White Fang as a whole, by @lelola http://lelola.tumblr.com/post/167886567426/in-my-opinion-white-fang-makes-zero-sense-as-a

Thoughts on Ground Zero by @lbro009 https://lbro009.tumblr.com/post/167883479695/ground-zero-manga-ramble

Calendar Events

Unnatural November by @gwblockparty

Ending November 30th

A fanworks celebration of all things weird and supernatural.

Participation information here!

AO3 collection here!

Eve War Event by @gw-evewar

Posting December 23rd - December 24th.

A fanworks Science Fiction event.

Participation information here!

Cocktail Friday by @thisweekingundamevents

Prompts post every Monday, submissions to be posted the following Friday from 3-5pm EST

Fun, open participation

Fics, ficlets, art, anything at all welcome!

Gundam Wing Secret Santa Exchange by @gwsecretsantaexchange

All assignments are out!

Remember to keep your recipient a secret!

Gifts should be posted and tagged December 20th - 24th

If you need to drop out for any reason (life happens!) please let the Secret Santa blog know as soon as possible!

#this week in gundam wing #november 19 - 26th

34 notes · View notes

thecurlysafari · 6 years

Text

SIM cards and smiles

I've seen a fair few things within my career. 6 or 7 trips to Africa having stayed in slums and marginalised villages, I've seen starvation, poverty, death, those dying. I've seen adults, youth, children suffering. My UK work hasn't shown me a life of luxury. Refugees, asylum seekers and those isolated groups was my first job out of university. Then it was focused on the isolation and injustice those with disabilities face. Not to mention the young people living in poverty and suffering silently.

I spent 3 years studying a bachelor's degree with modules like famine and genocide. I've spent 2 years studying social exclusion and more evils of the world.

So it's fair to say, Development and Disadvantage groomed me professionally and toughened my skin quite a bit.

But I won't forget yesterday. In my life, like I don't forget my Kenyan families and friends and every child I've met. I really will not forget tomorrow.

Spending the morning in a warehouse belonging to a charity I may become involved with very soon. A normal ish morning. Having distributed aid in calais jungle the day before I was ready.

I assumed my position as a trial and interim operations manager and co-led the team of volunteers as we arrived in a very picturesque and beautiful Brussels.

The day before, and distribution was heavy. I had to break up mobs who were really just people desperate. I was punched. Pushed. I didn't speak Kurdish but I could read the non verbal middle finger. It was very much a baptism of fire. And I knew this was just the actions of traumatised and desperate people.

So stepping out in a park in Brussels seeing hundreds of black and brown men, I had to get ready. The van was parked, I arranged the volunteers and off we went.

But my role wasn't to crowd control today. It wasn't to break up mobs. It was to say hello, goodbye, or sorry not today to over 250 men with beautiful faces but even more beautiful smiles and spirits. Ethiopia, Eritrea, Sudan, the original homes of these men, also known as refugees.

Unlike the chaos the day before, here in Brussels the group saw the van and began to queue. Calmly. Quietly. Respectfully.

Every single one smiling at you, thanking you for the very little you bought them. Having to make the choice between a razor blade or a bottle of deodorant. Most men laughed. Trying to take both then accepting they couldn't.

One man asked me if there were SIM cards and I told him later on we would hand them out. Then another man asked and another and before I knew it, around 50 were hanging around, in desperate need of these SIM cards.

But not for the reason you may think.

A SIM card meant access to a call or the internet. Which meant speaking to their mother or daughter or wife, hoping they are alive. Hoping to get through. A SIM card for these men was a lifeline they so wanted and needed.

We only had 100. And mobs broke out to get them. I was backed up and men became almost vicious. But I'm tougher than I look and held my ground, kept myself and volunteers safe as we distributed them.

I wasn't so tough in the next part though.

One cheeky smiled, chequered short, beautifully faced man asked me to activate his SIM. I took his phone and began to do just that. But then, every single person who had received a sim, which was around 100, saw me and wanted some of that, some SIM activation and there it was. Whilst others got their haircut or charged their phone with out generator, I sat with a crowd of men patiently awaiting me to set up their phone for them. As they said, to talk to their daughter, to let their wife know they're alive.

Now do I have an IT degree? Heck no. And each man to ask for help had a different phone, make, model and condition. Lets say though, carphone warehouse would have hired me on the spot if they were there.

Some men waiting for so long as I made my way to them and their phones. Most men didn't understand that credit wasn't on the Sims. Some men even came after and were devastated they didn't get a SIM.

But the smiles on their faces. Their thanks. Their gratitude. Their humility. I'm not tough enough for that.

One man waited an hour and a half for his phone to work and internet access granted. But his smile when it did.

Now, these men, I learned are the bottom of the refugee food chain. When other refugees might have the protection of smugglers or be a political asset for western governments. East African black and brown men have no use to anyone in a decision making capacity. Refugees fight them and steal from them, police forcibly remove them and governments deport them.

But the men I met were some of the sweetest and kindest to every cross my life.

So for every smile or thank you, hurt that bit more.

How and why could those really with nothing be so kind and warm.

One man. A 6ft something dark black man. His skin shiny and as black as coal. Standing out in any line that day.

He lined up patiently to receive his pack and was so happy. Then he was one of 100 with the illustrious SIM card. And his smile, would not go anywhere. From ear to ear, gleaming, he was so grateful, but knowing no English he showcased his gratitude by smiling. As meek, kind, friendly giant. Used, abused, exploited and so grateful.

The smiles of these men will never leave my mind. Because their smile was a light that was shining to represent their hearts. And wow are their hearts kind.

I was the only one left in the park as all volunteers hopped into the cars to take them back to France. But I had three more phones or sort in rapid speed.

But I got back into a car probably more comfortable then their cardboard that night. I stayed in my French air bnb with my delightful French host eating French food. While those men will be dependent on a local charity to serve one meal per day.

But they carry on. Smiling. Waiting. Hoping. Thanking.

If I'm offered this new role that I interimed for I will see them again. If I'm not, well I won't forget them. They like so many kenyans, have shown me what real genuine gratitude looks like.

They, like superheroes in Kenya, showed me how there is never an excuse not to smile.

For a SIM card. For a gift. Or for some of those men, for nothing at all. A smile is still created.

0 notes

theopentable · 7 years

Text

Encountering the Sacred Voice of Love in the Wildness of Our Lives (Matthew 3:1-17)

Discomfort, uncertainty, upheaval – these are all part of the human experience.

We don’t get to avoid these things.

Matthew’s gospel pays attention to these things and even holds before us ways that we too might hold firm in the midst of the chaos that happens in every human life, even when our previous sources of security have been shaken at the core.

And we know on some level that if we don’t transform our pain then we will transmit our pain.

It will sit close to the surface and emerge in surprising ways that we might not even be all that aware of.

And so we come to Matthew 3 and we have this enigmatic figure by the name of John who is as real and as honest as they come.

I don’t know if you have a “John” in your life.

You don’t get to pretend and make out everything is going fine when you have a “John” in your life.

But what John offers is something vital.

John breaks the silence and holds a space where people can enter into their own experience[1].

He draws people into the wilderness as if to help people engage with the wildness in their own lives.

John knew that if there was any hope of God’s people summoning any kind of spiritual energy that might hold them in those times when they are doing it tough,

or even in those times where they are just plain numb and living in survival mode,

then there needs to be spaces where they could honestly name their experience,

where they could name their fears,

their grief,

their shame,

their insecurities,

their powerlessness.

In other words, John helped them to come to terms with their humanity.

Here in the wilderness God’s people were able to acknowledge the “wild-things”; the out of control realities at work within and around them.

When he says “Repent” he’s really saying, “Come home, come join in the new things God is doing.”

That’s what repent means in the bible. It’s exile language. It means come back to the promise land, where God is, where you belong.

John helps them to recognise they’ve lost their way so that they can begin to find their way back home to God, to themselves, to each other.

* * *

But what about us,

Are there spaces like this for us?

Is our experience of church like this?

Are our relationships together the type of relationships that can handle the wildness of our lives?

Or do we tend to offer only the tidied-up versions of our lives?

One of the things that has shaped me is the wisdom of the Christian recovery movement.

What many have found through participation in AA groups and the like is that there is a safety in these spaces to tell the truth that is rarely found elsewhere.

What these communities know is that the starting point for a spirituality that transforms lives is honesty and openness,

a way of living transparently in the context of communities that help us to gather strength and summon hope in the midst of the challenges that life throws us.

We need safe spaces for mutual vulnerability so that we may lift the weight of debilitating shame together.

So John holds this kind of space for people. John gets that it’s our ability to tell the truth in our communities that serves as a vital aspect of our return from exile.

But how?

How do we get to the point where we feel safe enough to do that?

And how do we engage with this stuff in a way that doesn’t just keep us in a cycle of shame and blame and feeling crap about ourselves?

One of the critical things that John names is that this telling the truth and getting baptised thing is good but it’s not the full picture.

John talks about two baptisms: a baptism of water and a baptism of Spirit and fire.

The second baptism is the one that really matters – the baptism of Holy Spirit and fire.

The Spirit and fire baptism is where you really know and experience God’s transforming presence.

It’s not mere head knowledge, but rather an inner knowledge of infinite love.

Love has to come first; this is the awakening of truth and goodness we need to know deep in our being. Every other love is merely a second love.

We need to discover infinite love like an earthquake in the heart.

Encountering the Sacred Voice of Love

Among the great number who went out to be baptised by John was a surprising figure: Jesus.

John protests but Jesus insists.

As Jesus is baptised he hears the words that every human being longs to hear: You are a beloved son! You are a beloved daughter! And in you I am well pleased!

This is sacred voice of love.

Thomas Keating said that the ‘human heart is designed for unlimited happiness – for limitless truth and for limitless love – and nothing less can satisfy’.

That’s why hearing this voice is our great initiation into Life.

Life has not begun if we don’t know who we are.

But here is the ultimate truth of who you are: You are God’s beloved. In you God is delighted, ecstatic.

Of course, we don’t always hear it. Or maybe we’ve heard it but we don’t believe it. Or maybe somewhere along the line we forgot.

Or maybe we’ve never heard it. Our culture doesn’t know how to tell people that they are inherently valuable, inherently good!

In the movie Blood Diamond, set in the explosive civil war overtaking Sierra Leone in the late 90’s, there’s two men, one an ex-mercenary turned diamond smuggler, another a fisherman.

Each of them have their own missions: one seeks to recover a rare pink diamond of immense value;

another seeks to rescue his son who was conscripted as a child soldier into the brutal rebel forces ripping a swath of torture and bloodshed countrywide.

In this scene, Solomon is finally reunited with his son whom he loves and has been desperately seeking.

Only his son has been brainwashed by militia, forced to do horrible things. He doesn’t remember who he is. He thinks he is a soldier, not a son.

Watch this clip and see the power of a father’s love.

Come home with me and be my son again!

This is the gospel!

Come home with me and be my daughter again!

Do you hear that?

Let those words wash over you! They are God’s words directed to you.

Come home with me. Be my child.

If you can hear this then you’ll be okay with the mess and the muck and wildness in your life.

When you encounter the infinite mercy, presence, and availability of God you become secure in who you are.

You are at home in love. You drop your guard. You don’t have to pretend any more.

And you’ll start to be okay with the messiness in other people’s lives too.

We can learn to live transparently together.

Really repentance is getting to the end of ourselves.

It's saying "I can't do this all in my own steam. I need help."

Repentance is about opening ourselves up to something beyond ourselves and at the same time something we have complete access to.

In some ways it's discovering that God begins where we end.

God's loving presence can be found even, or perhaps especially, in the wildness of our lives.

And so we cry out.

We step into the waters.

We open our hearts to a Higher Power.

We learn that God’s love is as real and as available as the water flowing in the Jordan!

And that’s when we begin our journey again, set our sights for home, align our lives with “the way.”

So open yourself up.

Cry out.

Come home.

There’s love here, even in the wildness of our lives.

[1] And John knows the experience of the people. To start with, you have this troubling military presence on every street. Your God is supposed to be in charge and yet your lands are occupied by a people with foreign gods? What’s going on here? And then they’ve got this shiny great temple and yet there is a profound sense of disconnection from God. The religious leaders are either in bed with Rome or busy drawing significant lines between who is in and who is out.

God’s people no longer know how to convert their blessings into blessings for others. They’ve forgotten who they are. John knows the people have lost their way. Israel are stuck in a holding pattern. And the worst part is the silence. The numb silence. For 430 years they’ve only known silence. Where is God? What is God up to?

0 notes