Diamonds

We were a few friends walking at night. To a gas station to buy beer or something. It was a cold night in Tucson. We were bored, just killing time. We were walking down Grant towards Park street I think, where there was a Circle K.

On the way we passed a parking lot with exactly one car and one dirty bum. The bum was kneeling down beside the car and in the dim glow of a street light was feeling around underneath the body of the vehicle. He heard us walking by and looked up and motioned for us to come over. We hesitated, and looked far down the street towards the gas station. It was just us and the streetlight and the empty lot and the car and our breath. And the homeless guy. We walked up. He was talking about something and he was excited.

He asked if we had a flashlight. Nope. I had a lighter, I gave it to him. He smiled, walked around to the far side of the car and got on his knees. I crouched down and saw his face underneath the car in the weak light of the fire. I tried to see what he was looking at. He was in awe. He kept muttering, ”Diamonds, look at all those diamonds!” All I could see, reflecting in the light, were tiny pieces of broken glass.  

That is how you find treasure in a parking lot.

A quick thought on a book. And my address.

Disclaimer: this blog has nothing to do with the Peace Corps in any official way.

So. I just finished reading a book called “The Book of Embraces” by Eduardo Galeano. If I remember correctly he is from Uraguay, and he mentions in the book that he had been in exile for quite some time. For political reasons. The book is a quick read, split into many short chapters. Each chapter is at most two or pages long and treats a different subject. Each is titled with a subject “On dreams” “Beauracracy” etc . . . Page after page of thoughts, memories, thinly veiled fables and worldviews. There are some wonderful pictures that Galeano conjures up with his words. I wish to read it in the original Spanish one day.

 I believe that every book, every story is a conversation with the reader. A conversation between the reader and the author, and one between the reader and characters that live in the book. I talked with Mr. Galeano quite a bit. I’m not sure that I have much in common with Eduardo, but after reading one particular chapter I realized that we are equally bad at saying goodbye. But, he’ll never know that.

Anyhow, here in Morocco with the Peace Corps.

Here’s my address. Go ahead. Write me a letter. I can’t recieve packages yet, so no cookies!

Will Stewart, Trainee

S/C Corps de  la Paix

2, Rue Abou Marouane Essaadi, Agdal

Rabat 10100, Morocco