atticous,
Dear C,
Travel was the reason why we became the best of friends. Travel was also how we were able to find your mom who you haven’t seen in years. Also, travel made us turn a new chapter of our lives.
I remember those good'ol days when we were in ninth grade - we used to tease our classmates who dressed up like tourists from an unknown, exotic island, talk about the stuffed-with-clothes-and-toys duty free bags your mama gave nine years ago, and compare our vice principal to that pilot whom we see on a typical, no-delay American flight. You had big dreams of flying around the world with the intention of visiting different cities and countries, and of course, reuniting with your mom.
At first, I wasn't convinced - I thought it was a crazy idea that we travel since we were just minors way back then and I was so scared of traveling because I thought that we would end up becoming Icarus submerged in the pandemonium of the Pacific Ocean. I even expressed my skepticism of you seeing mama Vivencia again, to the point of hurting your feelings and almost ending our friendship. That was because I didn't see the purpose of travel - I didn't appreciate the importance of meeting people and sacrificing one's self just to work in a foreign land and meet the needs of his or her family.
It took you a while to persuade me - we had heart-to-heart talks and even fights; I even remember you accusing me of being a xenophobe, a demon angel, a gringo, or whatever... well of course, I'm not! Then you did whatever you could think of - you enthused me about those Lufthansa plane models - lil' Boeing, big Airbus, and other names I couldn't remember... meh, how boring. You told me about those must-go places of travelers - the Great Wall, the Petronas Towers, Empire State Building and other high places... no, I'm acrophobic! You were so desperate then, weren't you?
But you finally succeeded in this attempt. You asked me, how would you feel if your mother flies to another country and leaves you for good? You also told me similar stories - those Mexicans who risk their lives on flying like birds above the border to free themselves from the cage of poverty. And those trapped-in-Syria refugees who endanger themselves just to fly and immigrate to a place where they feel respected and valued as human beings. Sigh, I felt dejected - even up to now, when I remember what you said, I still snivel. I realized that my whimsical fears and doubts of heights, people, and travel in general, were nothing compared to the burdens of your mother and those people around the world who fly in order to seek refuge and be happy.
With that, I approved of your plans. I vowed that I would travel with you because I wanted to conquer those fears I have, because I wanted to step on the shoes of those who travel not for themselves but for others, and most of all, because you are my friend. Shortly after, I told my mama and papa about our plans to travel. They, like a god giving power to an angel to spread good tidings, gave their wholehearted assent - well, I was surprised, and voila, they gave us a good sum of money that would cover our flight fare and other places we could possibly venture in the destination we would choose. Then you called me and said you wanted to go to Los Ángeles, or rather, Angel City.
As we checked in at the airport and passed the daunting task of carrying suitcases and filling out several, hard-to-understand forms, we sat on seats A35 and A36 at the business class of our flight bound for Angel City. Throughout that 5-hour flight, we talked about the milkshakes offered by downtown's Hardrock café, the bird plushie souvenirs at Universal Studios, and most importantly, how your mama Vivencia was adjusting to her job as a flight attendant at United Airlines. Despite the sudden turbulences, ear "explosions", and stomachaches we had, we still enjoyed our first flight. And finally, the plane lurched on the runway - buuuu... Angel City, this is it!
As soon as we passed the immigration check and retrieved our luggage, we saw mama Vivencia’s sister. Whoa, we didn’t even expect her to be there. She looked crestfallen – she seemed as if she lost in the casino, but it was more than that. She told us that she did not get any text from her sibling for days, which was something that mama Vivencia would never do, right? Our hopes of going to downtown to taste those milkshakes and to Universal Studios to buy that pelican-like toy… were put to waste. But that doesn’t matter because we had a more urgent mission to do: to find your mama and reunite with her; we are not going to waste time in finding her, for every second counts.
So we went to the dormitory where she would usually rest for interstate flights, only to find out that the receptionist told she had not stayed there for weeks. Mama Vivencia’s sister then thought of going to the United Airlines office in Pasadena, so we dared to ask the staff there of any idea where she was. They also did not know where she was. We then resorted to going to her friends’ houses in Beverly Hills, Hollywood, and other distant neighborhoods around Angel City just to ask the same question. They also gave the same uncertain reaction. We frustratedly did those for three days straight; mama Vivencia’s sister now told us that she had to go back to Fresno, for she missed her work just to help us find her.
You wept as soon as mama Vivencia’s sister dropped us in front of your penthouse in Alhambra. Just like Daedalus when he heard that his pseudo-angel son fell. As I stayed on the balcony, I began to lose hope, think that our travel to Angel City was useless, and imagine flying back to New York. Throughout that night, we did not sleep We kept on thinking what might have happened to her. Did the plane where she was on crash to the sea? Did she trip over the cart containing those flight meals and collapse? Did she leave Angel City for good and forget about you, C? It was not until we heard a sound from the door, a sound so odd that whoever knocked might be a cop arresting someone for allegedly spreading mayhem around Angel City.
"Mama!" you cried, racing to the door as if you were an angel rushing to help after seeing that her wings were injured.
"Where have you been, C! Oh, I miss you so much, and who's that 12-year old, quiet niño over there?"
"Mama, that's Q. My best friend who travelled with me all the way to Alhambra just to help me find you," you replied, wanting to say more about me but too speechless upon mama Vivencia's unexpected arrival.
Then she hugged me, both impulsively and affectionately, as if she was my real mother, caressing and consoling me with my problems. "Mijo, I have to extend my gracias upon you and your familia, without you C wouldn't have seen me. I actually planned to travel to New York just to see him, pero I couldn't porque I had a lot of flights I had to attend... qué pena, I wasn't able to do so. From now own, I'll devote more time to C because I missed him mucho, in fact, I'm thinking of resigning from my job as a flight attendant,” she said. Her Mexican accent was so heavy that I wondered whether she really was your mom, or instead a Chicana who flew over the border and carried her language wherever she went.
"Mama, are you serious? What about our home, my schooling, Q..."
"No te preocupes, C, I'll start my new career as a teacher. I actually wanted to teach kids before, I was just obsessed with earning lots of money that I forgot what I really want. We'll leave a la mañana, travel back to New York together with Q, where we can start a new life... and for la casa, I shall be calling my sister and tell her to stay acá until we go back to Los Ángeles for a vacation." she said, with a determined smile on her face.
We were too speechless to say no to your mama. Well, she was right - we could start a new life when we go back and strengthen our bonds more. You asked me if I wanted to go back, well why not?
"We'll travel by car, not by plane, that means a road trip through a lot of states, millions of twists and turns on the expressway, and we'll be seeing..."
"So, we won't be flying anymore?"
"Yeah, but you may wanna say we're flying to a new life, are we not? Like angels flying on a new heaven, or paradise." She tried to speak in straight English and told herself that she was no longer working a job that required her to speak in Spanish for the sake some travelers... after all, we only know un poquito of Spanish, right, C?
The next day, we packed our suitcases, cancelled our flight bound for New York, and travelled back to that city by car. We might not have flown and gone to the other places where we wanted to at Angel City, but we came to think that this travel was actually a life-changing one, where we proved that we would be best friends no matter what, we would be seeing mama Vivencia again, and we would be flying to our next chapter in life.
Wish we could travel again soon.
Your bestie,
Q.
Literary: Travel
Dear C,
Travel was the reason why we became the best of friends. Travel was also how we were able to find your mom who you haven’t seen in years. Also, travel made us turn a new chapter of our lives.
I remember those good'ol days when we were in ninth grade - we used to tease our classmates who dressed up like tourists from an unknown, exotic island, talk about the stuffed-with-clothes-and-toys duty free bags your mama gave nine years ago, and compare our vice principal to that pilot whom we see on a typical, no-delay American flight. You had big dreams of flying around the world with the intention of visiting different cities and countries, and of course, reuniting with your mom.
At first, I wasn't convinced - I thought it was a crazy idea that we travel since we were just minors way back then and I was so scared of traveling because I thought that we would end up becoming Icarus submerged in the pandemonium of the Pacific Ocean. I even expressed my skepticism of you seeing mama Vivencia again, to the point of hurting your feelings and almost ending our friendship. That was because I didn't see the purpose of travel - I didn't appreciate the importance of meeting people and sacrificing one's self just to work in a foreign land and meet the needs of his or her family.
It took you a while to persuade me - we had heart-to-heart talks and even fights; I even remember you accusing me of being a xenophobe, a demon angel, a gringo, or whatever... well of course, I'm not! Then you did whatever you could think of - you enthused me about those Lufthansa plane models - lil' Boeing, big Airbus, and other names I couldn't remember... meh, how boring. You told me about those must-go places of travelers - the Great Wall, the Petronas Towers, Empire State Building and other high places... no, I'm acrophobic! You were so desperate then, weren't you?
But you finally succeeded in this attempt. You asked me, how would you feel if your mother flies to another country and leaves you for good? You also told me similar stories - those Mexicans who risk their lives on flying like birds above the border to free themselves from the cage of poverty. And those trapped-in-Syria refugees who endanger themselves just to fly and immigrate to a place where they feel respected and valued as human beings. Sigh, I felt dejected - even up to now, when I remember what you said, I still snivel. I realized that my whimsical fears and doubts of heights, people, and travel in general, were nothing compared to the burdens of your mother and those people around the world who fly in order to seek refuge and be happy.
With that, I approved of your plans. I vowed that I would travel with you because I wanted to conquer those fears I have, because I wanted to step on the shoes of those who travel not for themselves but for others, and most of all, because you are my friend. Shortly after, I told my mama and papa about our plans to travel. They, like a god giving power to an angel to spread good tidings, gave their wholehearted assent - well, I was surprised, and voila, they gave us a good sum of money that would cover our flight fare and other places we could possibly venture in the destination we would choose. Then you called me and said you wanted to go to Los Ángeles, or rather, Angel City.
As we checked in at the airport and passed the daunting task of carrying suitcases and filling out several, hard-to-understand forms, we sat on seats A35 and A36 at the business class of our flight bound for Angel City. Throughout that 5-hour flight, we talked about the milkshakes offered by downtown's Hardrock café, the bird plushie souvenirs at Universal Studios, and most importantly, how your mama Vivencia was adjusting to her job as a flight attendant at United Airlines. Despite the sudden turbulences, ear "explosions", and stomachaches we had, we still enjoyed our first flight. And finally, the plane lurched on the runway - buuuu... Angel City, this is it!
As soon as we passed the immigration check and retrieved our luggage, we saw mama Vivencia’s sister. Whoa, we didn’t even expect her to be there. She looked crestfallen – she seemed as if she lost in the casino, but it was more than that. She told us that she did not get any text from her sibling for days, which was something that mama Vivencia would never do, right? Our hopes of going to downtown to taste those milkshakes and to Universal Studios to buy that pelican-like toy… were put to waste. But that doesn’t matter because we had a more urgent mission to do: to find your mama and reunite with her; we are not going to waste time in finding her, for every second counts.
So we went to the dormitory where she would usually rest for interstate flights, only to find out that the receptionist told she had not stayed there for weeks. Mama Vivencia’s sister then thought of going to the United Airlines office in Pasadena, so we dared to ask the staff there of any idea where she was. They also did not know where she was. We then resorted to going to her friends’ houses in Beverly Hills, Hollywood, and other distant neighborhoods around Angel City just to ask the same question. They also gave the same uncertain reaction. We frustratedly did those for three days straight; mama Vivencia’s sister now told us that she had to go back to Fresno, for she missed her work just to help us find her.
You wept as soon as mama Vivencia’s sister dropped us in front of your penthouse in Alhambra. Just like Daedalus when he heard that his pseudo-angel son fell. As I stayed on the balcony, I began to lose hope, think that our travel to Angel City was useless, and imagine flying back to New York. Throughout that night, we did not sleep We kept on thinking what might have happened to her. Did the plane where she was on crash to the sea? Did she trip over the cart containing those flight meals and collapse? Did she leave Angel City for good and forget about you, C? It was not until we heard a sound from the door, a sound so odd that whoever knocked might be a cop arresting someone for allegedly spreading mayhem around Angel City.
"Mama!" you cried, racing to the door as if you were an angel rushing to help after seeing that her wings were injured.
"Where have you been, C! Oh, I miss you so much, and who's that 12-year old, quiet niño over there?"
"Mama, that's Q. My best friend who travelled with me all the way to Alhambra just to help me find you," you replied, wanting to say more about me but too speechless upon mama Vivencia's unexpected arrival.
Then she hugged me, both impulsively and affectionately, as if she was my real mother, caressing and consoling me with my problems. "Mijo, I have to extend my gracias upon you and your familia, without you C wouldn't have seen me. I actually planned to travel to New York just to see him, pero I couldn't porque I had a lot of flights I had to attend... qué pena, I wasn't able to do so. From now own, I'll devote more time to C because I missed him mucho, in fact, I'm thinking of resigning from my job as a flight attendant,” she said. Her Mexican accent was so heavy that I wondered whether she really was your mom, or instead a Chicana who flew over the border and carried her language wherever she went.
"Mama, are you serious? What about our home, my schooling, Q..."
"No te preocupes, C, I'll start my new career as a teacher. I actually wanted to teach kids before, I was just obsessed with earning lots of money that I forgot what I really want. We'll leave a la mañana, travel back to New York together with Q, where we can start a new life... and for la casa, I shall be calling my sister and tell her to stay acá until we go back to Los Ángeles for a vacation." she said, with a determined smile on her face.
We were too speechless to say no to your mama. Well, she was right - we could start a new life when we go back and strengthen our bonds more. You asked me if I wanted to go back, well why not?
"We'll travel by car, not by plane, that means a road trip through a lot of states, millions of twists and turns on the expressway, and we'll be seeing..."
"So, we won't be flying anymore?"
"Yeah, but you may wanna say we're flying to a new life, are we not? Like angels flying on a new heaven, or paradise." She tried to speak in straight English and told herself that she was no longer working a job that required her to speak in Spanish for the sake some travelers... after all, we only know un poquito of Spanish, right, C?
The next day, we packed our suitcases, cancelled our flight bound for New York, and travelled back to that city by car. We might not have flown and gone to the other places where we wanted to at Angel City, but we came to think that this travel was actually a life-changing one, where we proved that we would be best friends no matter what, we would be seeing mama Vivencia again, and we would be flying to our next chapter in life.
Wish we could travel again soon.
Your bestie,
Q.
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