Poetry of Poverty

Good morning ***

This "poor" deal is interesting, thanks for sharing. But the "poor" in America and "poor" in Indonesia are two different situations.

In Chad, poor didn't eat for two-three days. In America poor family have only 2 cars or a car and SUV and all have a cell phone each. In Tanzania, poor Masai lives in the mud and cow dong glued hat structure, and American poor is getting free foodstamps, free medical and subsidize housing, and a family of 4-8 have 2-4 cars only, and all 4-8 have cell phones.

My Champ, President Reagan once said, "...we (Reagan Family) were poor, but didn't know it, as there was no government that would tell us how poor we were. Still, my Mom always found someone poorer than we were and she was helping poorer than we were..."

My personal case was different.

I brought some money with me to America in 1981. I started my Accounting-Bookkeeping Also, I was making good money doing books I averaged about $50 some per hour in 1982 and had billable 120-150 hours.

I was poor in my mind, comparing me and my life in East Berlin where I was living (1978-1981) for a while as mention earlier. That was a huge source of money there, and I brought some with me to America.

But I asked myself a question that was later on, why Ford is so wealthy and I am so poor? I believed that "Ford" man still was a live living in "America" somewhere in secret where only wealthiest live.

This question put my life on different path, and a lifetime journy of learning why some make very big, while some will wade in the stream up to the belly in the water, and so many decided to never venture out of their poverty comfort. I am watching this “poverty” phenomena for 44 years now.

Like in Houston, in Oegon and Washington not that bad, Americans are very much "lip tide" people. It exposes the fear that even the Constitution "guarantee" "Freedom of Speech" Americans do not dare to test what US Constitutional Guarantee is worth in real life. Put on one part by the "academia" they seldom take the track on the left or right of assign free public schools path. Americans will not look to the right or left, or back like horse with blinders on, American will keep plowing horses’ share to the last breath never testing the freedom, never risking anything. Higher up on the socio-economic level the higher the paranoia fear of poverty.

I have emailed about 4,000 or more, my "news" blog to the various organization members I am part of here in Texas. All I got, 1 comment, it was complementary, thank you whoever you are, brave person. A lot of them approach me at the meeting, "...Czes' I like...appreciate...your emails, but I do not reply/comment..." That are no Texans, but not single Texan neither comented on my "News" blog nor approached me first for anything in the past 3 years we are meeting at these meetings. Here in Texas, is "us" vs. them, meaning people like I am who came to Texas. It doesn't look that it will change in my life time. And don't get me wrong, there are Good Texans that are arround me.

*** will rework this email to you and I will post on my "News" blog of our VANGUARD website, and I will refer this "Poverty Poetry" in my next email mid September 2025. I would not say here that I really enjoy meeting with you, exchange emails, and talking with you as that might affect the number increase of people who will walk away from you because you talk with people like me.

Blessing your ways, always

By Czes' Zalech

Mark Rumford, Bovey Tracy Parish, U.K., and I, Houston March 21, 2025