The Heart Goes Last in Chicago

Lebron's Suicide

LeBron frequented the library where Veronica worked as a tutor providing homework help.  Just a few months in that job Veronica realized that the children needed mental health prevention activities. 

She attended a mini conference at the Illinois State Building on Randolph across from the Daley Plaza where Picasso donated his famous large scale sculpture to the City of Chicago.  On a sunny day, one can see young children sliding down the brown slope of the sculpture. 

Chicago is a marvelous city with a great collection of public art.  From the sculptures in Millennium Park including the Cloud Gate aka The Bean to the Marc Chagall mosaic near the Chase Plaza
to the Flamingo sculpture by Alexander Calder in the Federal Plaza among many others, the city becomes a treasure to explore with many gems hidden all over including art on subway stops and the monarch butterfly sculptures in Lincoln Park near the Nature Museum!

Across the street from Daley Plaza, one can see a Joan Miro sculpture outside the Chicago Temple where Vero danced at an interfaith dance concert organized by an African American artist who showed great selfishness and shrewdness in her dealings with Vero.

Veronica brought art therapy materials like mandala drawings for the students.  She donated her art supplies to some little girls who wanted more.  Vero gave brochures to the library manager addressing emotional difficulties young kids face and need support with.

Vero's job stopped in June for the summer vacation.  Veronica asked her boss to hire her for the summer reading programs of Mayor Rahm.  Vero was not politically connected and did not get the job.  During the summer vacation, that library hired a young children's librarian from Wisconsin who thought of herself as highly intelligent.

When Vero went back in the fall to her job as Teacher in the Library, the climate was different.  The kids participated in many programs ranging from snake touching to Frozen parties where the children's librarian dressed as Elsa or Anna and put the photo of that party as a screensaver for her computer where she was constantly chain typing, because she wanted to be a writer.  Vero was being antagonized and disrespected.  Why was it so hard to enlist help from younger employees for the benefit of the children?

Then, LeBron committed suicide, and the children were devastated.  LeBron hanged himself.  The other librarian said that his stepfather was harsh with him.  Another high school student was killed at the library's parking lot too.  What did the library manager do? 

He installed police presence in the library and got a prize from the library for his efforts to establish safety.  He truncated Vero's hours too.  Vero cried at LeBron's wake along with his other friends.  LeBron attended the summer program of that Baptist church.  The library manager left the church in a hurried and scared fashion when he saw Vero at the wake.  Maybe Veronica came too strong for young white guys like the library manager, Phil, who her boss told her "he was her man," whatever that meant in American English.