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One thinks of Puerto Rico as being populous. But there are places where the homes are widely scattered, in the center of the Island in the rain forest. From the top of the opposite hill it would seem strange to see the bluish glow from a hot tub a few hundred feet below in the middle of all that darkness. If anyone had been at that particular spot on New Year’s Eve in 2002, that is.
Coming closer an observer would notice our four authors, fellows of widely varying ages. Each has a snifter of coñac in or at hand. The old gentleman smoking a cigar in celebration of his recent retirement is the owner of the property. Next in seniority comes his colleague from the University, there on semester break with his not yet middle aged companion. And finally here is the youngster taking a year off from school. They are waiting for the sounds of gunshots from distant farms and villages that will announce the finish of the old year.
They pass the time reminiscing and telling tales the way friends do this time of year. They talk about their own adventures and those of their acquaintances. Now and then the stories get mixed up a bit or embellished. They correct each other, or not, sometimes suggesting even less accurate versions of the same anecdote.
The youngest of the group, his body warm and light due to the water, his mind drifting somewhat from the alcohol, wishes that time would stand still. How nice to be content like this forever. Perhaps, if the others had the same yearning and to the same degree, it would happen just as he desires. The guns would not be fired, there would be no rude sounds to disturb them, 2003 would never arrive.
In a way it doesn’t, because this is where we leave them, chatting and laughing. Now and then they touch, accidentally or not. A stray foot makes unexpected contact. A touch on the arm emphasizes a point. Glasses are taken up and set down. A little further away we can’t hear them anymore. From a greater distance there is only the faint glow of blue light.
For us, 2003 arrived and all the years thereafter. But for them, nothing ever changes.
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