Men Over The Border

Friday, 05 February 2010 00:28

The shop was simple, just a kitchen with a window to place orders. Macario Sanchez Reyes, 26, and Everardo Hernandez, 20, relaxed on the shop’s patio. Large enough for eight people, the patio had a small bar just outside the serving window and two plastic patio tables.

After placing their orders, Reyes leaned forward on his stool and began talking about his experiences.  Hernandez sat with his head resting on his hands listening to Reyes, putting in a few comments here and there.

Reyes, who worked in Los Angeles for nine years at packing plants and other jobs, is now trying to get back to his wife.

“She’s paying the rent alone right now,” he said. Similarly, Hernandez is trying to get back to his wife and 1-year-old daughter in Salinas, California.

Both Reyes and Hernandez were arrested in the U.S. during traffic stops. Once in the legal system, U.S. Border Patrol picked them up and deported them to Mexico.  The two men met in a jail in Mexicali, Mexico.

In Mexicali, Reyes and Hernandez learned about the dangers of crossing the border on foot. They spoke with other migrants who talked about people dying in the desert. They heard about snakes, coyotes, dehydration and bandits. Reyes was most concerned with the bandits.

“I trusted in God,” Reyes said, when thinking of the bandits.

From Mexicali, they made their way to Altar, a town an hour south of the border, then on to Sasabe, Mexico - a border town. As they began crossing into the U.S. through the mountains northwest of Sasabe, they encountered the desert’s chill. Reyes pulled his elbows in with a shiver.

The temperature can drop below freezing depending on elevation and how far north one is located, according to the National Park Service Web site.

While they were prepared for dehydration, they were unprepared for the cold. Reyes pointed to his book bag. The weight of water had split the seam. Reyes grabbed his white T-shirt under his hoodie and shook it. The shirt rippled as he said, “You can’t bundle up too much. You need to be able to run."

Once across the border in Sasabe, Arizona, U.S. Border Patrol agents caught Reyes and Hernandez, took them first to Tucson and then to Nogales, Mexico.

Hernandez will try again on foot, while Reyes plans on getting a ride.  

“I’m not going through the desert anymore,” Reyes said.

Hernandez said he is going to pack more food and water, and wear heavier clothes the next time he tries to cross.

Reyes is going to have a family member help purchase a ride across the border. Reyes is aware that he might be dropped in the desert somewhere. That’s why he will have a family member meet him on the U. S. side of the border.

He estimates the smuggling will cost him $2,000. He plans to split the payment up in two halves: paying one half before the trip while a family member will pay the second half after the crossing. The smuggler will not receive the money from the family member until Reyes is in sight. He feels this will make the trip safer.

Walking away from the taco shop, these men have one goal- to get back to their families.

* Curtis A. Prendergast contributed to the writing of this story.

Written by WJ Anderson You are reading Men Over The Border articles