If you do not act soon it will be too late. Lola Cunching told me that she was surprised to see not only how large your sons are now, but also the manner of their dress. In particular, with some distress did she recall the appearance of Tomas. Apparently he showed up to a party you held for her—an elder—wearing a sleeveless T-shirt that exposed some quite ugly tattoos. Moreover, he also had shaved his head in a manner that apparently the Mexican gangsters enjoy having. Through his T-shirt she could see he had a tattoo of the Virgin Mary. The Virgin Mary! I hardly think his motives were ones of reverence. Perhaps he could have been more considerate, so as to not embarrass your feelings in front of Lola, by wearing a long-sleeved shirt. Lola also informed me that he came to lunch late, did not greet her, and sat in a corner with his girlfriend giggling in a disrespectful manner. Lola also mentioned that Gabe came to this lunch with his brother, in the same car.

It is puzzling to me why Tomas could have turned out this way, impossible for me to reconcile her account with the image I recall of him quietly hugging his mother’s leg because he was scared of his large, brown Lola (Lola Maganda). Sometimes I try to understand this. However, I cannot. You have always been a dutiful sister, but quiet and impossible to understand. For me your sons are equally difficult to figure out.

Once again may I urge you to send your boys here. It is not too late to make inquiries into courses at Ateneo for this fall. I look forward to hearing your response.

You and your sons are in our prayers always.

Your brother
Betino

A Dirty Penance

Venice, California
September 1993

Chapter One

I

He drives us through Culver City past glaring strip malls and empty storefronts, the sidewalks so bright they make me squint, and we catch a red light at the car wash on Overland where wetbacks stand in clusters, holding their rags and hoping for tips. They turn and glance in our direction, at my brother’s new Explorer, and I avert my eyes.