Trip to the dunes

By Pablo Bello

I found José or he found me at the Tijuana bus station, José sold candy-covered apples, who knows if it was a coincidence but he told me that I could stay at his house, his home was not far away and I needed a place to rest. He told me that he would soon finish selling his merchandise and we could go to his home.

The truck traveled almost 20 minutes through the Dunes of Tijuana, I never thought the city was so big, as soon as step on the dunes my feet were buried in the fine sand when we arrived at its suburb, an irregular settlement, there was no drainage and there was no water, we climbed a dune, it was the desert and I could not believe that the surroundings of the metropolitan area were so arid.

We arrived at his house and in the bed there was a child like 11 years old disabled, it seemed that he had cerebral palsy, he was the son of Joseph, and he tried to speak but only emitted guttural sounds, his wife was so kind.

At the height of ignorance I asked for a beer, I did not know that José was selling them to earn extra money, now I understood why he had invited me to his house, I expected him to leave my things at home, I knew that I was heading north and that I didn’t need to carry so many things with me.

The floor was of dirt and the walls of sheets and pieces of boards, the cardboard roof, could barely with astonishment, were happy, despite the suffering that must have a disabled child, they did not look bad.

I lived several days in his house, José sold beer and other things in his house, it seems to me that he also sold sweets and groceries, brought merchandise to sell in the colony.

Despite the obvious poverty his home was cozy, José told me that his son Paco, had to take him to the doctor from time to time, I imagine he received some kind of assistance from the government, but I do not think that much, in Mexico almost There are no social services and I think less in Tijuana.

Tijuana is a city of immigrants, dozens of people arrive daily to the metropolitan area heading north, many cannot cross the border and get stranded there, that’s why it is a place that grows by leaps and bounds.

It was winter and it was cold, it started to rain and we went to sleep without thinking what awaited us, at night I had a dream or maybe an apparition, my aunt Jessie Georgine’s aunt, appeared at the foot of the bed with a robe sleep that shone, was always very elegant, and told me to get up and seek refuge because the rain was going to flood the colony.

I got up without thinking about it and woke up to José, what looked like a simple rain had turned into a storm, the water was sneaking all over the house and jets of mud ran through the streets of the colony.

Juanita, one of José’s neighbors, also came to tell us that we had to leave the colony, fire trucks were already heard rescuing people.

José pulled Paco into his arms and with the few belongings we could rescue we got into the fire engine, although lowering the dune was dangerous, our feet got stuck in the mud.

We arrived at a shelter in Tijuana where we received the religious order of Mother Teresa of Calcutta, they fed us and we were able to spend the night safe from the storm, many people drowned because they could not rescue her in time.

After a few days I left Tijuana and left most of my luggage to José, more than half of them, I headed north, whenever I give up my life I remember José and his family, despite what It must be difficult to lose all your belongings and take care of your child and carry your child in your arms everywhere, José carried it with pleasure, with a smile on his mouth, and spoke with love.