In July

He said he puts things where he remembers them. She said we still lose them anyway.

.

In July, kalachuchi flowers fall with the rain. When water puts them on the ground, will they ever be found?

.

On Pili Drive, pili nuts, both green and dark violet, fall too. One afternoon, while walking under a drizzle, I saw an old man wrapped in a plastic rain coat walking the island between cars entering and leaving the campus. He had a stick on his right hand and a plastic bag on his left. Looking on the ground, he would stop momentarily and pick up a pili or two.

.

I guess things are found when they are badly needed, when stomachs are hungry and nights are cold. Those with no use stay on the ground longer. They start to turn brown right after glowing in the dark.

.

Once in a while, one of them would drop and while the brown has not yet consumed it, a lady with an umbrella would notice it, pick it up, and bring it below her nose. This will be the first and the last time we will ever understand existence.

Subscribe to my newsletters

Get updates from Umán and The Long Walk directly in your inbox.