Chick sat on the roof sipping her coffee, and perusing Atencion!, the weekly English language paper for the day’s activities. When she stood up to stretch her wings, she could not help but notice a naked man on the adjacent roof, hanging out his laundry. Mexico! One can appear in public quite nude with no fear of legal reprisal, though most folks prefer to be clothed. Nice butt, thought Chick to herself, but what an exhibitionist! Men!
Now, what shall I do today?, she mused. A walk through the market, a nice lunch, and then the biblioteca at 2pm for the movie…. That was the library, though it was nothing like a library in the States.You could bring your dog, relax in the open courtyard, shop in the tiny thrift store or gift shop, have lunch in the restaurant, or take in a movie. Today’s offering was a documentary and talk by local resident, Karen Cross, examining why she and so many Americans lost their heart to San Miguel. Afterward, Chick thought it was most certainly geared toward people with far more excess funds than she herself possessed, but she did buy the DVD to share with her friends. We’ll have a party at Junie Moon’s and show it on her 60″ widescreen TV, Chick thought with a twinge of homesickness.
On her way back, she stopped at Bonanza, a 15′x40′ grocery, which amazingly stocked everything one needed, except fresh produce, which one bought in the mercado, all at a fraction of U.S. costs, though still expensive for a Mexican family of little means. An enormous new grocery, Mega, sat on the edge of town, and Horror of Horrors, a Wal-Mart was going up by the bus station! What would happen to the family run tiendas, indeed all the small stores, when this greedy behemoth opened it’s doors? Financial devastation, the same as in the States! Chick’s busy brain was already designing Boycott Wal-Mart bumper stickers and planning protests.
Even though it was after 8pm when Chick arrived back at her friend’s place, Em had just gotten up. Ordinarily , Emily was a person with boundless energy, and it was shocking to see her so weak. Sharon helped her to the roof terrace where the three sat and watched the orange sun set over domed and spiraly steeples, with even a glimpse of the Parroquia, lit up like a Christmas tree. The old dog, Ruby, ambled up to join them, though at fourteen, she was nearing the end of her life, yet another sad loss looming ahead for her friends, thought Chick.
Sharon cooked dinner again, as she did nearly every night. Chick didn’t want to be a burden, but she couldn’t resist the tasty meals. She stood on a chair at mid-night, washing the dishes. It was the least she could do to repay her friend’s hospitality.
The next few days passed in a blur of activity, endless shopping for trinkets, a tour of a glass factory, lunches and chats with new friends she’d met around town, and a marvelous dance recital at the Angela Peralta Theater. Dancers from 4 to 64! Granted, it would have had more meaning if Chick had a better grasp of Spanish, but it was great fun, with the audience shouting loud salutations and encouragement frequently. And music truly is a universal language, she said to herself. Firecrackers and music to celebrate everything and anything here, even the dawn of a new day.
Yes, she could live here, Chick thought, as for once she rode home in a taxi. The fare was only two dollars, and it had begun to drizzle. She was sharing it with an acquaintance who lived in the same direction. Rather abruptly Chick was asked to get out a bit before her destination, so the taxi could avoid a long one-way circle. I may as well have walked, she thought as she picked her way along the bumpy cobblestones, on the suddenly unfamiliar street. Where am I?, thought Chick looking around with a twinge of alarm. This corner should be Aparicio, but it wasn’t. She walked a block further, and the sign read Animas, which she didn’t know at all. Remembering she had passed a still open tienda when exiting the taxi, she began to retrace her steps. “I’ll just go back the way I came”, Chick said out loud. But after two blocks, when she arrived at where she thought the welcoming light had been, all was shut tight. In fact, the huge wooden doors all along the street were dark, closed, and foreboding.
Oh, why didn’t I buy a cell phone that worked in Mexico?, Chick thought miserably, as she stumbled along, now unsure of what direction she should take at all. Oh, dear, I’m doing just what all the guide books say not to do!. I’m a chicken walking alone at night on a dark street! Chick bit her bottom beak. I will not cry, she thought. This is silly. She struck out blindly up the street, looking down to avoid stepping in a gringo hole, when a dark shape above her blocked out what little light there was.
Chick froze, ice in her veins, heart in her throat, and looked up.
Next: Good-Bye San Miguel
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