Two celebrations, a sighting, and a death

Virgen de Merced is the patron of the church and the barrio.
She's frequently pictured with chains (something about
appearing to Christian captives of Spanish
 'Mussulmen'  in the 1200s).

As the kids already described, last Sunday Sean and I made sure to get out of the house early enough to see the parade associated with the celebration of La Virgen de Merced, the patron of one of the main barrios in the center of town. People had been talking it up for days: clowns, floats, marching bands, kids dressed as angels....

But it turned out that the parade was the day before. We missed it, just like we missed Sean's soccer game (that was a different day, too) and about 12 other events since we've arrived here. Why? We misunderstand good information, we get bad information, we misunderstand bad information...there are lots of reasons and usually it's not big deal, but I was discouraged about missing the Virgen de Merced desfile. 


We heard a bit of music in the distance, though, so we trudged down the street to see what that was all about. It was a small group of people led by a guy carrying a picture of La Virgen and followed by a minimal band (drums, tuba, a couple of trumpets). The guys in the middle were bent down low over the street, and I first thought that they were pilgrims crawling on hands and knees (a fairly common sight), but then I read the slogan on the back of their matching t-shirts (EQUIPO DE PóLVERA) and saw more closely what they were doing...and I looked up just as Sean looked up at me with a huge smile on his face that probably matched my own. For we realized that they were laying down a line of gunpowder in a crack the middle of the street, every few feet punctuating it with a big firecracker of some kind. The line behind the POWDER TEAM  was several blocks long already and headed toward the church; the people in the street said lift-off was going to be at 12 sharp, ten minutes from now.

We phoned the kids back at the house and had them get ready to meet us. We all ran back to the church to be in place for the big moment. 

Wait for it....

At the appointed moment (not 12 sharp, incidentally), the church bells started ringing, and blocks away at the far end of the barrio, they lit up the line. 

It was scary and wonderful to see the spitting fire and explosions advancing down the street toward the church. I had my ears plugged but was surprised to actually be able to feel the blasts on my chest as the burn line got closer. And bells ringing and ringing overhead. 

Snacks and toys always on offer.

Wow. It was no parade, but it was terrific. 


~~~~


...And then today, a block away, a parade! For a festival of the small church just up the street, La Virgen del Rosario. We heard the music, ran out of the house, and got some great photos of a truly strange and wonderful little desfile. 

La Virgen del Rosario is another story; suffice to say
she is the patron of battles. (Talk to her before your
next soccer game.)

After her joyride, La Virgen will be re-installed
in the church at the top of the hill.

One of two bands from the congregation.

Some celestial beings, underwhelmed
by terrestrial transportation.

Parachicos! There's a long story about these guys;
we'll get into it later. Teaser: they are meant
to look like blond Spaniards.

These guys were part of the parade, too. The tall one in
the blue skirt had bottles of beer tucked in his
cleavage; he and I danced together a little.

Thrilling participant.

Team Virgen.

The hair on that particular Jesus didn't seem to bother
this sweet virgen.

So here I must note that this is exactly what it's like for us here in Mexico, every single week: mixups and disappointments powerfully overmatched by really delightful surprises and mysteries. 

You miss the parade but get the explosions...and later you get another parade.


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This is something that I've read about, but never seen: dogs stuck together after mating. Sean and I were running and came upon these patient creatures by the side of the road. 

They will part amicably, I predict.

Sean and I discussed our mutual ignorance of this phenomenon. Why does it happen? Is it bad? Are you supposed to do something for them, to help them disunite? 

Here's what the computer says: It's called "tying" and it's normal (can last from 2 to 30 postcoital minutes); some people assert that it's necessary for impregnation (for some reason I resist this assertion, but what do I know). You are NOT supposed to do anything for the tied couple (e.g., do NOT throw cold water on them, which is one thing I remembered hearing about), as they will eventually untie themselves. If you get the couple all riled up, the male could be injured, as one can imagine. 


~~~~


On Friday we drove to Guatemala to get our passports stamped. We had a bit of explaining to do on both the Guatemala and Mexico sides of the border (I just erased my boring account of it all; in any case, it ended well). And just today when I was washing dishes I flashed on a memory from that busy day and reminded the kids: when we were trying to explain the situation to the third or fourth Customs official who got involved in our case, a stretcher was carried past the door. The body on the stretcher had a sheet over the body and a handkerchief over the face. 

At the time we were so busy talking and trying to resolve the visa situation that we didn't really process the fact that a dead person was carried right past us--had died, probably, just a few minutes before. 

That border town is incredibly busy, noisy, crowded, confusing; it's in a narrow green canyon stuffed with vendors and trucks; it's full of comings and goings...but it seems we ought to think about that particular person's passing for just a minute.  Descansa en paz.