And that I did. I went to grocery stores and saw two movies I really wanted to see. Mistic River and Some's Gotta Give. I bought a whole bunch of stupid little things at the local markets, I walked around. Mostly, I thought about my family, my unborn nephew Pedro, my new life in Baton Rouge and Capoera.
I was at La Paz and I was in peace. One day I was walking one of La Paz's many market when I looked down my hands and realized I had very beautiful fingers.
In Brazil, a country of many ups and downs, there is a saying that helps people cope with their losses:
"Nessa vida, vao-se os aneis mas ficam os dedos."
In life, we may loose our rings, but we get to keep our fingers.
This saying makes an obvious reference to the loss of wealth and the findings of oneself, represented by what is often hidden by our material possessions.
Sometimes in order to see ourselves for what we really are, we need to strip ourselves of our material possessions and see what we are made of. It is a scary but revealing experience. Do it, and you may find that your bare fingers may actually glitter brighter than your expensive golden rings.
I was walking the markets, contemplating about my shifts in life and my new upcoming challenges. I was about to embark on a new stage, where I will have to live on less than 1000 U$ a month. I will have to work hard, but my ass for five years so that new doors can open for me.
The ride here, from that January 5th, 1995, has been miraculous. Almost 19 years have passed an I am a whole new person. My fingers are bare, my nails are long and dirty, their skin is crackled dry and of many colors. Cold and altitude have taken a huge toll on my cuticles. Nevertheless, my fingers have never looked so beautiful. I am at peace in La Paz.
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