Love Letter
Are tears in Heaven also salty?
Twenty years ago I started writing. I started late, luckily not too late. When we left Pedralva, I was still a twelve-year-old girl, and I cried all the tears in the world. I could not understand how it was possible to have so much salty water inside my eyes. After a year during which I always went back there, against the willing of my mother, I gave up visiting the place. There was something broken inside me that would never be properly repaired. There was an irremediable gap.
In 2002, my uncle Joffre died. I was flooded with fond memories of my happy childhood. I wrote him a letter, which was published in a local newspaper. This letter was one of my first writings. I had forgotten about it. I didn’t have it anymore. My cousin rescued this letter and sent it to me. Now I see that, without realizing it, I wrote as if I were a girl, after all, he was part of my unforgettable childhood.
To my uncle Joffre
So, you really left. So it is. Everyone leaves. I just wish I had spoken to you before, thanked you before. What a pity! Anyway, I thank you now. I don’t know if you can hear me, or rather, I know you can hear me.
Uncle Joffre, I want to thank you for being part of my childhood. I want to thank you for your store. Ah! your store! It was magical! The round boxes of man’s hats, the beautiful pieces of fabric, but there was one thing I will never forget: “the marbles”. You had a box with hundreds, thousands of them from all colors, shiny, sparkling, my God, how wonderful!
I was going to buy three or four balls. You let me choose, patiently. I remember a white transparent ball, that by closing one eye, we could see on the other side. How beautiful! I could only buy five, but you always gave me three more, it was an unspoken agreement. You know what? I still have those marbles! They fell into my heart!
I remember you very well. You were tall, thin, you seemed to be constantly chewing something. You wore a light suit, pants, and an old jacket. You had a gray beard, that was always unshaven and a tuft that you threw back at all times.
You made me happy! You were good! You were very human, you were very good, you had a boy’s soul!
Thank you for your kindness, thank you for your store full of magic, thank you for your children, dear cousins, to whom I hug you, thank you for the marbles.
In a special way, Uncle Joffre, thanks to Ligia, my cousin, friend, sister.
It's late. I think I’m going to cry a little. Here we still do this. I think people also shall cry there where you are, but it is about happiness and love. Are tears in Heaven also salty?
