I'll never forget it. Do you remember like I do? It was on
Meitlisunntig, January 12, of course, in the
Seetal district of
Aargau - a part of town where I did not usually go. The
girls re-enact the role of women in the
Villmergen War of
1712 and it is spectacular.
I remember that it was an unusually wet day, and I had packed some sunflower seeds to snack on. Things were going smoothly until you began
Flamenco dancing, right there in the
crowd. What provocative
brio, I thought. What
chutzpah. I threw a seed at you, and wasn't terribly surprised when you approached me.
"What I meant to say was," you said. "What I meant to say..."
I saw you forming the Tibetan fist of death beside your thigh. You were nervous, and I wanted to placate you.
"I like listening to previously recorded emergency warnings," I said.
"I like cut-up 3 Musketeers bars on Saltine crackers."
"...and sometimes I enjoy, like, gardening. You know."
You had been silent, but your first relaxed. I took your hand and we watched the rest of the march.