Lupita

Music was playing over the intercom.  Kids from all grade levels began singing with it, singing some song I have never heard before but that they all seemed to know and like.  Sherman jumped up in his fuzzy, one-piece, footed pajamas and began doing a Pete Townsend-windmill with his arm.  "Dyno-mite!" Hands vs. Feet sang, along with the other kids.  We just kept calling the numbers.

I wheeled my stacked cart through the Buford Highway Farmer's Market.  I never use carts.  I don't like them. I generally just break my own arm off with an overstuffed basket before pushing one of those pinche things around.   I made an exception.  It looked like rolling Mexico, stocked with Day of the Dead bread, sémaforo candy, Mexican Coke and fresh tortillas and cream. It was gorgeous. 

I drove toward the city, stuffing a carne asada taco in my mouth.  It was my second.  "Excuse me..," an Asian man with accented English asked me from a neighboring car.  "where is Farmer's Market?".  I pointed with my thumb in the opposing direction and continued stuffing taco in my mouth.

As I walked around the park, a large, dark SUV rolled past, its back window quickly lowering.  I saw Curley's eyes looking out through the open space.  Even though I couldn't see the lower part of her face, I could tell she was smiling. 

I laid on my back, looking up at a sunny blue sky.  It almost hurt my eyes it was so bright.  I saw a full color image of the Virgen of Guadalupe, transposed over the blue, up in the sky.  It looked like the Virgen on the back of my Nuevo Laredo shirt.  I smelled roses.  And then I saw roses, circling and blooming around her in the sky.

They were red.  Red roses.