Ominous Correspondence by Dustin Pickering

I have been in publishing since 2010 with my literary arts journal Harbinger Asylum. As the company criteria evolved, we published Usha Akella’s The Rosary of Latitudes. This book was traditionally published and established my reputation in India. A publisher based in Kolkata read an interview with Usha in World Literature Today and contacted me on Facebook. After we found some commonalities, Kiriti Sengupta of Hawakal Publishers invited me to submit a manuscript of poetry.

I asked him if he had a preference for subject matter. He responded, “I want you to bring the God of the Bible out.” We had numerous discussions of my humanistic ethics and their roots in Christian teaching. After years of being an atheist, I was coming around to the Christian faith from a secular angle. The poetry collection became Salt and Sorrow and was released on June 1^st, 2016. It was a tiny book of Rumi-esque wisdom rooted in Scriptural narratives. It is no coincidence I sent it by mail to Coleman Barks after asking for his mailing address through email.

promotional flyer for Salt and Sorrow published by Chitrangi Publishers

Fast forward to January 20, 2017 and the thing I feared at that time came true. Donald Trump was elected president. I never voted but when he began his campaign I felt the impending danger. In late 2018, the federal government shutdown over Trump’s demand for a border wall. It is considered the longest shutdown in American history at that time, until his second administration broke that record. News stories revealed how government employees were being harmed financially by this inefficiency. In good will, I chose to mail a copy of my new book with a short note to President Trump and ask him to conclude the shutdown. In my letter, I speak to him about the hurts and frustrations of the employees and wish his administration the best. I mailed this package to the White House directly from a local postal annex.

A few days later, it was announced the shutdown was ended. I did not tell anyone I sent the gift. Oddly, on April 1^st that same year I received a note in an envelope from the White House. The letter was on formal White House card, signed by the president himself. It read that he was glad we lived in a country where the Word of God was openly spoken. I proudly framed this letter and announced on social media how I had interacted with the administration.

Letter from the Trump White House letter received ominously on April Fool's Day

Not too long after this, the policy of separating families was broadcasted on news media. I heard many children and young people were without important sanitary items and were not in touch with their families. These young immigrant children touched my sympathies. I felt compelled to act. I found the email to Unilever’s management and emailed them to ask if they could donate items or funds to help the children. Their initial response was that they were not able to help everyone who requested it, but a few days later I had another response from someone higher in management. The note said they had reviewed my email and decided that children in such situations required their help. They reached out to DHS and posted charities to their employees for donations. They also informed me of these charities I could donate to myself.

Their second response from June 27^th, 2019:

“Dear Dustin,

Thank you again for your recent email. We'd like to provide you some further information regarding your note.

Neglect or mistreatment of the most vulnerable and innocent of people—children—is unacceptable and at Unilever, we believe we cannot just stand by and watch. We spoke with a leading aid organization for migrant children, and contacted the Department of Homeland Security and Customs & Border Protection to ask how we can help, inquiring about donating personal care products and diapers. Legal restrictions prevent government agencies from accepting such donations, so instead we are extending our financial support to two organizations that are on the front lines in the Rio Grande Valley advocating for the care and dignity of migrant children: the Young Center, and the Lutheran Immigration & Refugee Service (LIRS). We have also notified our employees of organizations where they can make individual contributions.

Unilever worked with the Young Center last year when we learned that migrant families were being separated at the border. They have since expanded their policy work to support more migrant children and families. We hope our additional support will lead to similar outcomes this year.

Again, thank you for reaching out to us to share your concerns. If we can be of any further assistance, please feel free to reach out again.

Sincerely,
Dove Consumer Services

Consumer Engagement Center | 800 Sylvan Avenue, Englewood Cliffs, NJ 07632
Update Contact Information | Terms of Use | Privacy Policy | Sustainable Living Plan”

I also typed a letter to President Trump again, and stuck it in an envelope. The letter was written in a cordial voice, yet kindly warned him of how leadership styles could affect American history. This lesson I had learned from early readings of Richard Hoftstader. The letter was mailed to the White House.

I find it compelling and promising that my poetry collection gift focused on human sympathies and narrative psychology. The entire premise of the book was to share how Christian narratives could reflect on contemporary human problems, and what the Bible could offer to complex humans struggling in today’s world of cultural hype. It seems a fit gift to the president who is basically an entertainer, a showman, and a flashy narcissist. The spirit of the book eschewed these vices. It isn’t intended as an evangelical tome, but rather an engagement with eternal truth and psychological struggle.

My second letter is written in the tone of the prophets themselves, perhaps. Setting the stage for the second term’s delinquency, I would never have expected my observations of persistent media doubts, bipartisanship, and the way violently diverging opinions between our dominant parties have demoralized America to be so salient. We are led to a political standstill filled by a demagogue. After Trump’s first term ended, I breathed a sigh of relief.

July 13, 2019

 

Dear President Trump:

 

In January, I wrote to you concerning the shutdown. I sent my poetry collection Salt and Sorrow as a gift. Shortly after, you wrote back to me to thank me for the gift. I write to you to acknowledge receipt of this note, express my gratitude, and to address something I consider of dire importance facing this nation.

This issue with detention centers at the border is upsetting. In American history, we have seen similar crises. However, I am unhappy with the way the White House chooses to address this matter. Our country is divided and is in need of a leader who can bring the polar extremes together. We see this with Alexandria Ocasio-Cortez aligning with Sen. Cruz. I hope to see this type of leadership from you, your officials, Vice President Pence, and others associated with your administration. There is too much blame and it confuses things immensely.

I have personally spoken with Rep. Brian Babin’s office to learn that there is a bill on the floor to allow private donations to the detention centers where illegal immigrants and refugees are being held. However, I also hear that Rep. Lindsey Graham will not let a bill through the House. I do not know what to believe. Both the left and the right are blaming one another. I find this to be confusing and not helpful. It doesn’t tell me what is happening, what is being done, or what I can do as a citizen.

I would like to send this quote from Albert Speer’s book Inside the Third Reich for its powerful insight on people in positions of power: “His favor is so desirable to his subordinates that they will sue for it by every means possible. Servility becomes endemic among his entourage, who compete among themselves in their show of devotion. This in turn exercises a sway upon the ruler, who becomes corrupted in turn.” Speer goes on to write: “The special conditions of his style of rule led Hitler…into increasing isolation.” I do not wish to stoop to Nazi analogies in your leadership, but I believe the lessons in history purport to show leaders have a great impact on the future of a country. The United States of America has offered profoundly powerful leadership to the world but I understand we are not appreciated for the good we do, reviled for the bad, and have put ourselves at financial risk in assisting others. I have read you are making a sincere effort to limit these risks by encouraging other countries to provide their own defense. I do not believe you are a bad person. The partisan media confuses things and sometimes your own behavior (for instance, on Twitter) leads me to wonder what the truth is. I cannot tell as a person with limited resources in acquiring information. I do believe you are a brilliant man and I hope to appeal to your good nature in my correspondence.

I do not want to see this country divided by violence, steering on the brink of utter chaos as we continue to hear bipartisan views on matters of dire importance such as these detention centers. This is a frightening situation for many of us. If the Democratic leadership is failing, please work to call them to task. If the problem is your own party or leadership, I imagine you are sincerely working to overcome that.

It is simply unfair to those of us who want to believe you intend well for the country to be in continuous confusion about the most important matters of this century. The heated rhetoric is simply too much. I do not want to see a Pyrrhic victory for one party or person. I want to see this country in togetherness as it has been in other periods of crisis.

I hope my book has pleased you and the First Lady. I am immensely pleased to have heard back from you and hope to continue writing and being heard by our President.

 

Thank you,

 

Dustin Pickering

Houston, Texas

For the record, my every vote against Trump was for female candidates.

Previously featured in a variation at Ars Notoria May 2026.