Talk to Strangers

Another cloudy Santa Fe morning.  Somehow I continually experience aberrant weather on my adventures.  Long ago, on a family trip to Southern California, we had to buy winter coats at Disneyland, in April!  The song may say it never rains in SoCo, but if I'm visiting it probably will.  Pittsburgh in November was bitter cold and everyone proclaimed I should have been there the week before.  A few Februaries ago in Portland my companion and I enjoyed sunny, warm days.  So not every veer from the typical weather course is a negative.

Days here seem to begin with low level clouds and cool winter air.  I was pretty sure it would have been ten degrees warmer here than in Denver, but the opposite is holding true.  No matter, I am prepared,  One of the advantages to car travel is this; I can over pack and want for nothing, while still managing to forget an important item or two.  Like a sleep mask.  I have flip-flops in case the hot springs call - and they will - snow and hiking boots, and two pairs of tennies.  Sneakers to my east coast friends.

When I first came west in 1979 I was teased about calling my favorite footwear sneakers.  Was I planning to 'sneak' around in these shoes?  Was I a 'sneaky' person?  It didn't take long to glom onto local vernacular and call items by names that prevented me from being identified as a greenhorn.  I never hear that term anymore, we now call the influx of pot-seekers newcomers. When I arrived in Colorado it was evident that there were many Spanish, Mexican and Native influences, but New Mexico has us beat.  I don't even dare to attempt some of the pronunciations here.  Thanks to GPS, I don't have to ask strangers for directions.  Why did I take French in high school?  Was I planning on moving to Quebec?  Spanish would have served me so much better over the years.

Another good reason to not talk to strangers in Santa Fe is this; strangers don't talk to me.  In Colorado, on the trail, in the gym, on the street, people acknowledge one another.  I say hi - they say hi.  I nod my head - they nod their head.  It is painless.  Smiling at someone I don't know makes me feel good, like a citizen of the earth.  Receiving a smile from a stranger makes me feel even better.  On the Highline Canal where I walk a few times weekly I see lots of kids, bicyclists, dogs.  I talk to the kids, breath in the dust from the passing bikes and pet random dogs.  I always preface my request by telling the leash holder I need some puppy love.  The reply is usually "go ahead, he's friendly".  When I used my usual line in Santa Fe recently, the lady who was walking three canines flat out told me to "get a dog"!

The cloudy day won't stop me from taking a walk about this morning.  There are plenty of museums and cafes nearby.  Often I use art as inspiration to write.  While I don't always follow the true meaning of Ekphrasis, I find visual art to be incredibly stimulating.  For me it is more about the emotion I feel looking at a piece, rather than a literal interpretation.  Artists who can take an image from their minds-eye and translate into their desired medium fascinate me.  I can visualize and attempt to draw or paint, and my results are consistently juvenile and simplistic.

No sunglasses needed today, but I will don my tennies and a light winter jacket.  I'll walk around the fringe of the renowned Plaza and yes, I will smile at strangers.  I might even utter a greeting or two.  If I expect nothing in return, perhaps the Universe will gift me with more than I could ever imagine.

Time to Write,

Jane