September 1, 2010

One of my favorite things about Mexico has been the pleasure of sitting in her many plazas and watching people. Mérida has an especially nice plaza in the center of its downtown as well as many others scattered around in nearby neighborhoods. Fairly regularly you can find me sitting in the Plaza Grande watching the city pass me by and enjoying the shade or the cooler evening air. The Plaza is raised and has many trees so it always seems to have more breezes than the street level.

There are lots of regulars who pass me by. If you have spent any time sitting on the park benches watching people you will likely recognize some familiar characters. There's the performing clowns, the Chiapas textile vendors, the hippies with their usual trinkets, the regal nut lady with her basket of nuts, the rose sellers, Gloria--the lady with the bulbous eye who quietly begs, the guy who sells the pecking chickens on a wooden paddle, the man who makes music on his saw, people posing silently as statues, the preacher with a megaphone and perhaps my favorite: the fan guy. There are actually several fan vendors but this guy is more dashing and suave. He imagines himself to be a Zorro like character.

In English, there is only one way "to be". English has only one verb meaning "to be". Perhaps that explains the emphasis in the United States upon "doing" rather than "being". And a lifetime of doing may have stunted the being you perhaps wanted to be.

In Spanish, there are two ways "to be". Spanish has two verbs meaning "to be". One is "estar" and the other is "ser". Estar connotes location or temporary condition while ser has to do with permanent or innate conditions.

There is a richness in living in a place that recognizes different ways of being and gives you ways to communicate that to others. That richness overflows to the literature, philosophy and way of life. A culture that respects ones right to be naturally has a mañana attitude. A culture that advocates only one way of being rigidly requires uniform behavior from all its citizenry. It is no wonder that many expats struggle when their way of being clashes with alternative ways of being. Spanish can conjugate twice as many ways of being as English can. So can you once you have lived here awhile.

Bájate! Vive sin prisa! This is one of my favorite road signs in Mexico. It means something like "Slow down. Live without hurry or haste." Good advice for all!