July 5, 2017 - Life on a Park Bench

Life on a Park Bench

“You came back,” Marcos the waiter said as he served me my soup.

“Of course, I did.”

My plan for today was to have coffee at the Café Patrimonio, visit with a few friends at the SCCLC, and then have lunch in La Guardia at the little restaurant on the Plaza.  Not all went as planned.

I did have my coffee at the Café Patrimonio as planned.  The sun vanished as soon as I arrived.  The temperature dropped, but it didn’t start to rain.  That was a good thing.  I take a notebook with me on the days that I go exploring, in hopes that I’ll find a quiet corner to write.  Some days I manage to write ten pages or more.  I don’t edit, I just let the ideas flow.  But this morning, my family and friends were texting me, so I didn’t get a lot done.

I went to the SCCLC to drop off a book to Matilde, and to talk to Debbie and Mariela.  School is out, so I assumed they’d be working in their rooms.  But this is a Christian school.  They were having a time of prayer in the chapel.  So I left the book with Rolby at the gate.  I’d have to visit another time.

So now I was early getting to La Guardia.  It was only 10:30 when I arrived.  My restaurant would not be open for at least an hour.  What to do?  Plant myself on a park bench, enjoy the breeze, watch the ladies cleaning the plaza, listen to the kids in the school, and write.

For the next hour that is what I did.  I have finished Onesimus, and have started another novel.  This one is about a third completed, since I was working on it the fall of 2012.  But I have two other idea dancing in my head.  One is about Mary, the mother of Jesus.  I came up with the idea of Luke interviewing her.  There is more about Mary in Luke’s writings than anywhere else.  He said he investigated these things, so I assume he must have spoken to Mary.  I also have an idea for a novel about Pharaoh’s daughter, who adopted Moses.  

For an hour and a half, I wrote about Pharaoh’s daughter.  I have an outline for the book, as well as the opening chapter when Pharaoh orders the death of the Hebrew children.  

With three novels in my head, I have decided until one surfaces, that I will spend two days each week working on Mary and two days on Moses.  Since Remembering Sorrento is further along, I will do three days a week on that one.  It is kinda fun having several ideas coming out at the same time.

I saw the gate to the restaurant open, so I finished my thoughts and ambled over there.  I didn’t see Marcus, the waiter from last week, but a lady was right there to get me the best meal possible.  They serve a traditional Bolivian meal.  It starts with a soup.  On the side is boiled yucca, which I love to pile hot sauce on top of it.  They have two choices for the main meal, which they call Segundo.  I chose chicken, which came with rice and chuño, a type of potato.

Within five minutes of my arrival, the restaurant was full.  Everyone who came in greeted me, sitting close to the door, with “provecho,” which means enjoy your meal.  Such is life in a small town.  A TV was playing the Simpsons.  My back was to the TV, but several in the restaurant were following the antics of the characters and laughing.  There were no children here, only adults on a lunch break.

Marcus brought me my chicken after I finished my soup.  He was glad that I returned.  I guess he doesn’t see that many foreigners or writers sitting in his restaurant.  

To me the meal seemed quick.  It was over before I knew it.  But I looked at the clock on my phone and realized I was there an hour.  I have slowed down my pace.  An hour at a meal seems fast, especially at a place like this.  

The bus to La Guardia and back cost less than a dollar.  The meal, including a tip, costs less than $3.  I don’t know how long I will remain in Bolivia.  Six month?  A year?  The rest of my life?  But I do know that I will be back to this restaurant in La Guardia once a week.  It is worth a hundred times the $4 that it costs me.