Summary

In the first section of “A Prayer,” a woman is praying for the safe return of her son from Korea. She prays that he won’t be harmed while fighting against the Chinese and Communists. She recalls how gentle he was as a child and says she knows he doesn’t want to hurt anyone. She asks God to put His hand over her son’s heart as protection. She says that if God demands blood, she wants to offer her own in exchange for her son. She pledges to pay homage to several shrines and touts her son’s prayers the Virgen de San Juan del Valle. She says that her son was afraid when he had to leave home.

In the second section, two people are talking about a new contract that’s being offered to laborers. The laborers will be...