ANTIGUA MARKET DAY: THE SEARCH FOR LAVENDER

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She spills the black tea leaves dry and mounded on the battered metal scale the canella and the ambered incense the brown bark wrapped in burlap and the chilied nuts and the manzanilla flowers where eternal sons of leathered mothers pull handcarts loaded groaning under mountains of yuccas to be laid displayed atop complicated vibrant weavings abuela woven dyed deep soaked remolacha red and dried beneath volcanoes history deep a blink a breath a beat a step a whisper the tap of a finger the tender swipe of a baby’s brow to settle her while you make pyramids from shining red tomatoes and braid garlic for your brother who then slings them over his shoulder walks off yelling gravelly voiced ajo ajo ajo ajo mira momnita then you chop tops off the purple yucca expose the blinding white flesh and arrange them in the basket little rounds looking up like day stars mirroring if you could get close enough night stars that have been swallowed by a blue brightening overhead and covered by soft white quilts of clouds snap tap pulse swipe of eternal time papaya papaya papaya cinquo por dos and he squeezes sweet oranges into clear plastic bags ties the corners juice glistening and giggling while she walks away with four liquid jewels dangling from two hands two and two when she turns and disappears behind the hanging hearts livers glistening from silver hooks and she comes upon a boy scratching a cat’s belly lying draped boneless atop sacks of powdered white soap and I find the blue enamel spoon that I have been searching for but I see no lavender here but I’m certain it has just escaped me because how could there not be lavender here I have certain faith that it is hiding under that basket of russet colored live chickens or lightly tucked among those little strawberries that would absolutely shock me with their sweetness if I just dared eat one.

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Comments

[Christine Simon]

Antique Market day
Dennis...the photography and your prose are both exquisite. I travelled there again after taking in the colors and the people and the boneless cat. Thank u! Chris Simon