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enough Helena was up there. I told her everyone was here and then she
came down. I asked her if by any chance she had come back to the house
after she’d left the last time she was here. She said that she hadn’t and I of
course believed her. I also had the intention of asking more or less the same
thing to the owner of the estate next to the house.
We both went back inside and joined the others. They’d all brought
vegetables and tubers as gifts. I thought it was curious since I’m not that
fond of vegetables but I graciously accepted them anyways. Raúl and
Maribel brought me plantains. Mrs. Matilde brought me yams. Nereida
brought green peppers from her own garden. Oscar gave me a bag of
pigeon peas that his wife had sent me. Helena felt bad that she hadn’t
brought anything. I told her not to worry but she still was upset. She then
asked to be excused got on her bike and said that she’d be back.
When Helena came back she brought with her a bouquet of different
flowers. I asked where she had got them and she said she went from house
to house asking for flowers. She made very clear that hadn’t stolen them
and that I also believed. She had red and yellow roses as well as other
flowers.
While the others were conversing about their daily lives and routines,
Helena and I were preparing a very beautiful flower arrangement. Helena
said that though we couldn’t eat them they were food for the eyes. She
couldn’t have been more right…and people say she’s crazy. I still had some
lemons left so we also made lemonade. No one had yet spoken about the
reason why we had come together.
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