Las Brizas

"Let the adrenaline flow and carry you through the excitment of being set free..."

 Cool Breeze

La Escula y una tortura de Morcielagos

Long before la Escuela de los Reyes got built, we would take classes at Las Brizas (cool breeze).  Las Brizas was the name of our area and the school was in an “abandoned” building that had a ton of rooms, some of which we were forbidden to go into.  Nevertheless, being young and being explorers, our recess consisted in exploring the dark rooms and playing hid-&-go-seek.  The building looked as if some wealthy explorer family had once lived there and abandoned it.  It was pretty, it was like a huge square, filled with windows every where, and in the center of the construction were the rooms: bedrooms, bathrooms, kitchen, and sitting area with closets – kind of like a house sorrounded by a verandah all around, except ground level.

                During one super stifling school day, we opened all the windows, doors, and continued with classes as normal.  The heat though was unberable that morning and we knew we would not last very long there for class.  We waited for the entire class of 20 students to arrive before we headed to take class out door.  As we sat there chanting some songs an unexpected attendance of uninvited guests flew past our heads, desks, and as quick as they appeared, books and notebooks began to fly up and across the room.  Everyone started screaming and rushing to make it out the door and the morcielagos (bats) just kept emerging by the hundreds! (Well maybe lesser, but at such moment of commotion, it felt as if there were tons of them).  Kids ran out and bats continued to fly everywhere!

                Everyone took cover, their sound, screams were piercing and thus proclaiming their sudden agrivated mood...we knew we had altered their air by opening all doors and windows.  Their living quarters were the dark rooms and the dark bigas (2x4s used to create ceiling), those were their resting areas.  We ran outside and took cover by the lemon and marañon trees (cashew trees).  There, in what seemed a mixture of laughs and frightened voices, we talked over each other how we had never noticed they lived there!

                School let out early as it had been a traumatic moment.  Our teacher Señora Rosario, who came long distance just to teach us had grown fond of us therefore, would often go have lunch with us if not go to the monja’s house (nun’s house) and wait for the daily sermon to start at the church.  We loved her as she taught us many things and she would share some stories about traveling and North America.  We were intrigued by her features as well, she was somewhat short, her hair short and curly…she carried herself very properly, and thus why we liked her so much.

                A hot school day ended due to massive bat attack! Another moment of inspiring advenures of being bombarted by screams and wings flapping at our heads! That’s what happens when you live out in the country side where an abandoned building becomes the rooms of knowledge and wisdom.  It was in that school where the intellectuals stood out, although no one thought of it then; it was there where the bright spirited imaginations took sail. 

Written: Thursday, September 30, 2010