Reading into a Story

Some times I like to read the news as if it were a fairy tale. Often it makes for a better read. This morning I saw this story in my hometown paper, The Miami Herald....

Contrite Crackhead Mugger Turns Himself In

By Tim Chapman

He's a violent crackhead who punches women and steals cars. But at least he's contrite.

Armando Pena, 44, mugged Gladys Gonzalez early Tuesday morning as she was arriving for work, punched her in the face, slammed her to the ground, snatched her white Ford Taurus and roared off.

And then he came back 12 minutes later, professing regret for his actions.

To the disbelief of Miami cops and paramedics, Pena parked the car, stepped out, and said, ``I did it. I did it.''

They slapped him in handcuffs.

Asked why he punched the woman and shoved her to the pavement, Pena replied, ``drugs, drugs.''He admitted smoking crack cocaine minutes before the attack at 1912 SW 17th Ave.

The happy ending might not have happened if not for quick-acting Omar Grass, a Miami officer who had just finished his midnight shift and was driving home in his police cruiser.

Gonzalez, 60, had arrived at the address, the La Arboleda apartment complex, and had stepped out of her car to open a gate to a parking area. She cares for an elderly woman at the complex. That's when she was mugged.

Grass, 41, was headed home when he saw the white Taurus speed off and Gonzalez sprawled on the ground. He thought it was a hit-and-run.

Rather than pursue the car, Grass went to assist the woman.

''That kind of thing stays with you,'' he said. But he radioed in a description of the car and the mugger.

Dispatchers sent other officers to the area to hunt down the fugitive. Miami Fire Rescue also responded. Gonzalez was bleeding from the face and hurt her hand when she went down.

''When you see that, you think of your own mother,'' said Officer Jairo Lozano, a 27-year Miami police veteran.

A group of officers and paramedics were tending to Gonzalez, preparing her for the trip to Jackson Memorial Hospital, when the contrite mugger reappeared.

Lozano was the one who cuffed him.

''He was coherent,'' Lozano said. ``He knew what he did.''

Asked why he came back, the handcuffed Pena said: ``I felt bad.''

There are several things are amazing about the story. The enormous level of compassion and service being done by all three parties is apparent.

1. the victimized woman, Gladys Gonzalez, who arrived in the morning to help out an elderly lady

2. the police officer, Omar Grass, finishing a midnight shift who, instead of going after the fast chase of getting the 'bad guy,' stops to help out the fallen woman.

3. even the drug addict, Armando Pena who turned himself in when he could've gotten away with a vehicle worth several thousand dollars.

4. the action: Gladys was there to take care of the woman, the cops came in to take care of her, and the criminal came back and took care of the cops job. The circle of action and reaction was completed within the three main people.

5. The lead cop saying that he thought 'what if that was my mother?'

Now I re-read the story and then see how many different links I can make in it. With that in mind, there is also some very funny names used in the piece. Coincidental or not, the different words in the story are unusual.

1. The location: La Arboleda. That translates to 'the woods.'
2. the car: White Ford Taurus. Taurus is a mythological figure. White Cow or a male cow, which is a bull.
3. Gladys Gonzalez, the woman was punched and hurt her hand, is similar to flower but also means 'hurt' or 'injured' in the feminine form.
a. There is a popular cartoon called Gladys, whose titular character is a...cow.
b. Gonzalez comes from latin variation on gund, which means war.
c. So her name loosely translated means 'daughter of hurtful war'
4. Armando Pena was the criminal's name. Armando means soldier in Italian.
a. Pena means sorrow.
b. So Armando Pena name means 'sorrowful soldier.'
5. Omar Grass, the cop's name.
a. Omar means 'first born son' and also 'long living and thriving'
b. Grass means...well grass
c. So the cops name means 'long-living and thriving grass' or 'son of the grass.'
6. The lead officer who sums up the story is named Jairo Lozano.
a. Jairo means voice of God
b. Lozano means 'God helps'
c. Jairo Lozano together means 'the helping voice of God."

Reconstituting the story as a fable using these names it could read as follows...

One morning the 'Daughter of the Hurtful War' went to 'the woods' to take care of an elderly woman. She rode on her White Bull. In the woods she came across a 'sorrowful soldier' of the war who struck her down and rode off with her White Bull. As she lay on the ground, the 'long-living grass' picked her up. The grass tended to her and treated her wounds and called upon others who took care of the 'daughter of the hurtful war.' After a few minutes of riding around, the 'Sorrowful Soldier' felt guilty. He returned to woods with the White Bull and submitted himself to punishment, and the Helping Voice of God spoke to them and said 'when you see this, think of your own mother.'

It is a whole lot more interesting to read the news looking for clues and hints at mythology. It can even give a simple story about a remorseful criminal more color, life, and meaning.