De Hole.

Dear Friends,

Picture this, you driving by in you' up-to-date car in this out-of-town Florider settlement...that is to say, suburbia but I call it settlement because it so quiet, it feel like every scrap o' life settle down to silence. Next thing you know, you spy a pretty gyal with long tan-legs standing on a white wicker chair on de porch of a house. She hollering as if she money leaving she. 

That was Cousin Lis.

(These immigrant people, I tell you, going to good-good foreign people land and behaving like this!)

She and she family been visiting one bright sunny day, birdies choiping, boiping, eating doity woims, and so on.

Cousin Lis too tall for de chair, wobbling like teen-gyal trying out high heels for the first time. 

Me and she brother, Cousin T., stroll out to the front door.

Me sister out dey arguing. "Is not a big snake. Is only a smallll snake."

Cousin Lis insisting, "It big. It! Big! What is wrong with you?"

She point to the plants, hands quivering.

After a year and a day, she calm down, step down from she stage and enter the home, walking bend, like a ole-ole, frail ole man. 

Food pass around and we dig in (which remind me of de hole, I getting to that soon). Without fail, de conversation circle around snakes.

I announce, "N., the next door neighbour, say that de snake been hanging out on a wall and drop on de shoulders of de husband, de former owner."

Honey-chile, lemme pause here to tell y'all.

Where I come from, in South America, we got several cultures blending together, African, Indian, Amerindian, Chinese. None o' these cultures ain't got white-folks stoic attitude towards snake. We don't hug-up and kiss-up snake and ker them to bed with we. Okay, well, some men and women seem like the human-variety kind.

Anyway, all in all, as far as we's concerned, Snake Symbolise Something Strange. (See what I do there with the Ss sounds?) We-the-blended-citizens pool we resources and together we believe that when you dream about snake, it mean you got enemies. I ain't doubting this. I prove it to meself couple times well.

In other words, we got a healthy fear of snake. 

Many weeks later, after the Incident with Cousin Lis, me sister announce, "Look! A hole in de garden. Must be de snake."

Dear Lovely Friends and those passing by here, I am asking you in Proper English: can snakes dig holes? 

Until you reply, I gon be avoiding this garden in this here foreign land for a while.

I got another theory as to how de hole appear but I got to fix lunch, my mother feeling hungry. No, no roasted snake.

Stay safe and have a lovely week. Dance up and eat good food. Plenty love, neena. xxx