PRISONER EXPRESS

DNA spins these four letters A, T, C and G, out into an infinite variety of combinations, some of what are short (it takes three letters to code a basic amino acid), others of which are very long, like the polypeptide chains that can be seen streaming like tendrils.

DNA knows exactly what info to pick out and how it all goes together for each thing it wants to "say"...chemically, DNA knows how to build itself, and also knows how to build RNA (ribonucleic acid) which is nearly its identical twin and active counterpart. RNA's mission is to travel away from the DNA in order to produce proteins more than 2 million of them, which actually build and repair the body. RNA is like active knowledge, in comparison to DNA's silent intelligence. It is well established in science that only 1 percent of the genetic material in DNA is used for its complicated coding self repair, and manufacture of RNA, leaving 99 percent doing nothing that science can account for.

The body typically contains only 9 ounces of bone marrow, but that is enough to manufacture our total supply of red blood corpuscles, at a rate of 200 billion new cells per day! What a breakdown, science is weird but very informative about our breakdown. Under the genome project, every atom in every human being, regardless of color, creed, religious background or tastes, we are all composed of similar elements of carbon and along the line genetic mutations created differences in our current present conditions, that we see as black, white, brown, red, yellow or grey, or the whole spectrum of the rainbow...we are the same, created equal, yet different.

I remember my grandma Juanita. My grandmother was a great lady, an old Indian solver haired woman. That Indian on the "Keep America's Highways beautiful" commercial always reminded me of herâ€"a lot! She was so proud and always stood facing the wind, silver hair flowing in the air, her face many rivers dried and cracked. I can also recall my grandfather, I never met him and only one photo of him existed in our family (that I know of). He was from Mexico, played violin, the photo of him that I remember was my grandfather Manuel standing there with a violin under his chin, ready to perform, or maybe after a performance. I never asked, and was never told much else.

There were four other step-grandfathers, and I only met the last one, a grey haired old man, maybe German or Polish, Eli Putman. He was a nice old man, his fair looked like cotton balls, used a cane to walk around, and Grandma Juanita was so strong, she would lift him up and take him with her to the kitchen to sit down and eat with her. I never heard him speak, never heard my grandma speak English, nor Eli speak Spanish. So, who knows how they communicated, or how they became man and wife.

My uncle Raymond, and Aunt sally, were my daddy's oldest brothers and sister in law. They were cool. Lived in a big two story house in Caro, Michigain. That house had so many rooms, but all were filled up with the two dozen kids they had. Uncle Raymond was son of another step grandfather.

Like my uncle Benito and wife Hela, his father was another step grandfather of mine that I never met. Uncle Ben used to play the accordion, and made all his sons learn to play it too. My cousin Joe and my cousin Paul's oldest daughter, I never met her, but she was really pretty. I also had another uncle Casimiro and his wife Orfa, they were Indians from Oregon. My uncle Gasi' dad was my step grandfather I net met, but I did meet Gene and Genevea a long time ago, but never met my step grandfather. I also had an aunt Isidora, everyone called her Dora. She was my dad's baby sister, her husband Crecensio was always drinking beer, we used to visit them all the time in Saginaw Michigan. My grandfather Manuel was my Aunt Dora's father too. Dora had a daughter my cousin Lupe, who was cool, I liked her a lot.

We used to go to Toledo, Ohio to visit my other uncle Raul and my Aunt Emma and my cousin Rose and Ruby, they were my mother's brother and his wife. My uncle Raul had a brother, my uncle Duberlie, and Aunt Lola, and they lived in San Antonio with my cousins Duby and Fred. We were all very close and also with his sister, my mother's older sister Aunt Tomasa, AKA Alice, she was a widow. I never met her husband, but she had some real beautiful daughters. And my aunt Alice used to love to dance, she also had a body to that reminded me of Marilyn Monroe, make-up and all, lipstick, glittery dresses, and she had the curves too, and always used high heels, she smoked a lot but she was cool. I liked her a lot.

My grandma had a couple of brothers too, that I got the chance to meet one day, Don Jose and Don Pablo, or to me Tio Jose and Tio Pablo. My dad called them 'Tios's and told me to call them Mi Tio's too. Other people addressed them as Don Pablo and Don Jose, they were like my grandma, tall men, leather faces, Indian features darkened by the sun or age. They had big hands and knew all the animals they had by name. And all the animals obeyed them. I was always quiet, observing, and they did things in front of me maybe as examples. I doubt they did those things to show off. My oldest brother Manuel was named after my grandpa. And for some reason, we name fairly often after others, like my sister Alice, my baby brother has my dad's name Basilio.

I recall my nephew Rudy and David, when my brother in law was ill, used to go stay at my sister's house and care for them as they were my kids I'd drive them to school, to the park, to movies, I played 'Dad' until my brother in law recovered from a broken shoulder and leg. He was epileptic and fell and hurt himself real bad. David looked like a small version of the Hulk, hair and all.

I also remember my other nephews Ricky and Manuel Jr, they were my brother's Manuel's sons, they grew bigger and bigger than me. I remember how Manuel Jr. played football for the Harlendale Indians high school barefooted. He was a tough kid. Ricky followed him too and my brother Manuel was a huge man too, well over six feet four and over 360 pounds! Maybe the size came from my grandma's side, in fact all my brothers stand over six feet. I am the only one shorted than that. Most of my cousins and uncles stood over six foot, only myself and my dad Basilio were shorted than that. Most of my family breakdown may seem boring to some readers by now...so I will come to a conclusion here soon.

Three years ago, my step son Aaron Thomas Iverson got hit by an RPG in the chest, in an ambush on the way to Karbala, Iraq, died instantly. He too was six foot four and a soldier in the special forces, a hero defending our freedoms, like many other heroes they will never be forgotten this Memorial day...Just like Mr. David Zettner, my friend Kevin Zettner, here in prison with me. His dad just passed away, and his dad was his hero. He was well known, loved, and will be missed, he played in the '60's with Willie Nelson, but Kevin held on and did not break down back to my family...As my dad Basilio told me once: "When I die, don't cry for me, and do not take me flowers. If you want to cry, do it now. If you want to bring flowers, do it now when I can see their beauty and smell their scent."

Mom broke down when he left her, my wife broke down when she the news. Two marines knocked on her door to announce that her son Aaron was in a two foot box. She wanted to go insane. My aunts and uncles, cousins and brother and sister, my dad, all have caused someone to break down.

The family breakdown comes down to this: all those mentioned and named here are no longer with us.

I can not break down. I have slowly crumbled, a little bit at a time, each time the news hit me and another chip broke off...another family member died...year after year, after year, when will it ever end?

I refuse to break down. I must be stubborn, like my grandma Juanita, raise my head to the wind, and let the spirits feed and nourish me until my hair becomes silver like hers, and blows in the wind. And until my face looks like many rivers dried up and cracked...

Then, hopefully someone else can give a breakdown account of the family tree. The roots continue to grow. The food given here will only nourish those it is intended to. To those that took the time to read this family breakdown...remember your ancestors, and make not of little things that others might have missed.

Preserve your memories before you breakdown and forget where you came from.