Richard Chamberlin

CONTACT:
chamberlin.richard@gmail.com        

BIO:
Richard Chamberlin has a BA in Journalism from Columbia College in Chicago, is a Vietnam Vet and has worked as a reporter, freelance writer, psychiatric nurse and cab driver. He is the author of a memoir, Hitchhiking from Vietnam, a novel, Nora’s Notion, and three books of poetry and short stories. His most recent book is Easy Living, verse about Southern Arizona and beyond.

PUBLICATIONS:
Easy Living, poetry.
Hitchhiking from Vietnam, a novel.
Nora’s Notion, a novel.
The Cybernetic Possum, short stories and poems.
My Desert Menagerie, short stories and poems.

Poetry

Sacrament of the Border

driving along the 32-foot-high border fence
up and down rolling hills
in an ocean of desert
surfing down one then up the other
suddenly we spot a group of small antlike figures on the horizon
the engine whines in low gear
as we race down a 45-degree slope
then up the next rise
as we get closer someone is waving at us
we reach the top and pull over
a dozen migrants congregate around the jeep
they say they are out of food, water
Pastor Randy, the driver, asks them how long they’ve been there
“Two-days waiting for Migra,” comes the answer
“Coyotes stole money. We have nothing,” said a woman.
we hand out bottles of water, protein bars, chips, cans of tuna
and little fuzzy animals for the kids.
a woman propped against the fence is crying as a friend comforts her.
she has run out of blood pressure medication
and is afraid she’s going to die
an SUV from No More Deaths pulls up
they have a medic
I ask her if she has a blood pressure cuff
she doesn’t
Randy climbs to the top of a rise and calls the Border Patrol
comes back
“They said they know they’re here”
“What are they waiting for?” I ask
He shrugs and holds out his hands.
Later we head back on the border road to our comfortable lives
we pass four other groups of migrants huddled along the fence
trying to shield themselves from the wind
we stop and give aid
construction equipment lines the road
holes in the wall are being repaired
suddenly we see three green and white Border Patrol SUVs
coming toward us
moving in the direction of the migrants
carrying with them
a sacrament of dust from the desert

An American Obsession

at the grocery store today I saw young man in line
wearing a heavy coat long unkempt hair eyes darting around
I didn’t see any gun
at least not an AR-15
couldn’t tell if he was concealing one

drove to the post office to buy some stamps
noticed a car driving back and forth in the lot
something seemed strange
the way he was driving
very slow and deliberate
never really saw a gun

my wife and I decided to go out to eat
I chose a booth far away from the door
but one where I could still see who was coming in
so that we could duck under the table
if someone started shooting
but I was relieved
because on that night I didn’t see anyone with a gun

I think tomorrow I will buy a handgun
and a shoulder holster
just in case