ah, Sundays

Date February 8, 2009

Sundays in Manizales are my favorite, I’ve decided.

I woke up early this morning and went for a wander along the Avenida just like everyone else in town.  The street was closed for bicycles and joggers and roller blades and for a few short hours the screeching brakes of buses didn’t rip savagely through the day.

People smiled and waved as I jogged past offering words of encouragement, polite nods, and the occasional bag of water.  And I didn’t feel like a stranger in this place.

I came home tired but revived and sat on the balcony of my loft apartment enjoying sweet mountain sunshine and salsa music from the street below as I waited on Jill to call.

Because that’s what she does on Sundays when the lunch hour rolls around.

We walked slowly to Milan and had fresh mango juice and bandeja paisa at a little restaurant on the side of the street where the waiter brings us everything “con todo gusto, mis amores.”  We watched people walk by and talked about life in a far off place and how we wished people at home could understand why we love it so. Then, we payed the bill and strolled toward home.

We passed the woman and her three children that spend Sundays sitting on the sidewalk.  The family that has nowhere else to go and too much dignity to beg.  We passed them sitting there, we bought five empanadas at the tienda, then we turned around and walked back to them.  The mother smiled, thanked God for warm food and undeserved kindess, and promised to pay back what she owed us.

And Jill and I swore we’d never just pass them by again.

I spent the rest of the afternoon curled up in my apartment reading and writing and loving everything about Sundays in Colombia.  The quiet of the morning, the comfort of lunch with a friend, the gratitude on the face of a mother, the feeling of being exactly where I should be.

6 Responses to “ah, Sundays”

  1. c said:

    when you type a contraction, do you hit the accent button instead of an apostrophe?

  2. Amy said:

    Hey Ems, great blog today. You put me right back into Manizales and it was a nice image. Yes, how can you not love your life right now? It’s an amazingly wonderful experience. Btw, just to be annoying, you spelled bandeja wrong. But I still luvs you.

  3. Emily said:

    Ames–

    Never annoying. My Spanish spelling blows, but my pronunciation is spot on. jajaja. Wish you were here.

  4. Amy said:

    I kinda wish I was there, too. Miss you.

  5. Lou said:

    Exactly where you needed to be…….for that moment. I heard peace in this blog. I think I even heard a bird or two singing.

    BTW – our neck of the woods here in MS has been wonderful the past few days. High 60’s and sunny. Absolutley my kind of days!

  6. Robin said:

    I. cannot. wait. period.