A grandmother called Ines


The weekend niece. from the book, Searching for treasures


Facades Guatapé, Antioquia, Colombia
Facades
Guatapé, Antioquia, Colombia

     In that easy-going city of abrupt ups and downs of its flagstone streets and its many-colored houses scattered among its hills, lived Inés, her maternal grandmother, who affectionately awaited her arrival. If on that particular weekend, it was her turn to spend it with her grandparents, she would take the small bus from San Gil to Barichara and arrive in another additional hour. There, it was just a short walk to her grandparent’s small coffee plantation. She would return Mondays, before dawn, settled into her seat, with her schoolbag converted into her pillow and her head resting upon it as she slept profoundly.

     Her grandmother Ines was, indeed, a very well-loved person in little Dora’s life. She understood her perfectly well and knew how to treat her as an individual. Never like a child, nor as a grownup, just like another person, always affectionate and with respect. Always cheerful and loving, her grandmother had gone through difficult times in her youth. She knew pain and sorrow, having experienced it personally, and was therefore perfectly capable of recognizing it in others. And, during that time, Dora was going through the irreparable loss of her mother, with whom she had kept such a close relationship ion those few years that barely had to share together. Ines, her grandmother, was that balsam of affection that together with time began to heal the tender girl’s unfortunate childhood.


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