A bright and colorful misfortune
A bright and colorful misfortune Indonesia Tuesday morning, the alarm rings. They wake up and get ready for a new adventure, planning and daydreaming with what is about to come. They dress up and go out to discover the narrow streets and colorful markets that surround the little town. Laughing and singing, skipping tourists and bikers, the floor trembles under their feet and she loses balance as a fragile figurine, falling to the irregular grounds with no other support than his momentarily shaky hand. Wanderers and locals stop their continuous alloy and help the delicate female who needs assistance and a radical change of plans. Confusion, impotence and even rage take over her. Everything changed and nothing could continue the desired way. Changes. Again. ‘Why even make plans?’, she said, ‘misshappenings tend to take over’. He looked at her with a crooked smile, and they both knew that things were soon to change, again. They just did not expect that it would lead them to immerse themselves in a more meaningful experience, a more colorful time, in a world filled with opportunities. From hikers to bikers, and misfortunes that lead to a new family. Learning, stories, myths, and traditions; hopes, dreams, and a feast with petitions. The colors girdled the scene. The smells of the frangipani surrounded their gods and figures. One and all wearing yellow, reds and oranges, with flowers in their heads, and making their skins look paler. As one once said, ‘beauty is in the eye of the beholder’. A marriage to celebrate, and welcoming smiles that encircled them. Words, songs, smoke and vapor; pictures, sharing, embracing and love. Love in all shapes and forms, welcoming and appreciating the difference. Traditional love, and respected; to the young, the old, and the elder. A golden crown of half a meter announced the arrival of the bride. The groom awaited the moment to be seated by her side, having their hands tied -and not figuratively as many may have thought, but with a thin thread and a finishing knot. Drops of holy water and the wise man’s chants announced the union of the husband and his wife. Off to a new life. And our wanderer couple off they went as well, to a new season of their new times; driving around an island that had changed their life forever, opening new frontiers, widening their home, hanging with the apes, eating rice and chicken, learning a new language, riding on the slopes, playing with the waves… thanking the mischance that brought them life and knowledge, different perspectives, earlier than expected.