Café Los Cuiles by Tony Press

Tony Press's short flash about a Mexican café.

Her dimples arrived almost before the little girl herself and when she came in through the front door, the beads clicking to announce her arrival, her smile and eyes lit up the dark café.

Open the curtains, we called, Luis and Ita and Lety and I, from our usual corner, and it was done. The new waiter, whose name we did not yet know, did the deed, and we thanked him as he passed us on his way back to the kitchen.

This Oaxacan morning, the day after Christmas, was growing sunny, and the rays painted thin lines on the walls. I thought of walking up the steps to Cerro Fortin and the viewpoint near the Benito Juarez statue. I hadn't been there in months and it would be a good day to go.

The girl is four years old, or possibly five, with pink tennis shoes and new blue jeans. Silver stars on her pink shirt spell the name "Dora." What awaits her in the years ahead? She carries the promise of a grand life, a world and future impossible to imagine.

And for us, the regular customers, at our regular little tables, with our coffee, or chocolate, and our bread, who knows? What is to become of us, we who once were young.

Who can say? And more, do I really want to know? I decide that I don't and I stand and leave my share of pesos on the tablecloth. Like the Irish poet I will arise and go now.

I will climb the hill alone today. As long as I can walk, I will walk. Tomorrow, if it be granted to me, I will see my friends again at our café.

11 comments:

  1. A nice expression of 'the ages of man', set into a vivid, ambient time and place. A short but evocative story. Thank you,
    Ceinwen

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  2. this is a truly excellent Story, Ceinwen has said it all.

    well done

    Mike McC

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  3. Makes me want to be a regular at that café.

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  4. Thanks for your kind words. I believe I will walk now.

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  5. Great check on past, present and future existence. Thank you for delighting us with such a great piece.

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  6. The opening line is one that has lodged in the creases of my neo-cortex and I look for dimples to match. Thank you for this image.

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  7. This is quite beautiful.

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  8. This story is of a unique moment in time. A regular in the café sees a young girl enter as a bright spirit. He ponders his life and what it will be, deciding he does not want to know. Good description of the café and surrounding area. Excellent character description.

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  9. A lovely slice of life story. Simple and evocative. Well done!

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  10. The Press Shameless Publicity Division (that would be me) is delighted to announce this story is included in the book CROSSING THE LINES - Stories by Tony Press -- published by Big Table. Available via print or kindle, here: http://www.amazon.com/Crossing-Lines-Tony-Acarasiddhi-Press/dp/0996540563

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