A Walk Down My Thoughts

Have you ever experienced a moment of plain bliss? A moment where you are fully there, enjoying everything and anything coming your way. The type of moment where it almost feels like a dream, something so simple yet strangely amazing. For me, that moment speaks on its own, with no words said it shines brighter than anything.

One of the winters, when it was supposed to be in a snowy magical wonderland where everywhere you step you sink into a pit of snow that pulls you into the warm feeling of hot cocoa next to the fire, my parents decided to take me to Mexico for a sunny winter break on the beach. After a few days of settling in at the hotel, we decided to go for a walk in the downtown streets of Puerto Vallarta. 

We drove a few blocks downtown trying to find a parking space in the crowded streets. I squealed with excitement as I looked out the water-stained window to see bright glowing colors that were surrounded by music and lights. I opened the car door and stepped onto the brick road that lead to tiny shops that wear decorated in the spirit of Christmas. As I walked, I looked at all of the decorations hung around doors and windows that held up small, cozy buildings. I heard beautiful voices of people singing and dancing from a distance. I felt the cool ocean breeze flow through my hair while the gleaming sun touched my shoulders. 

We roamed across the roads, from shop to shop. With each one, we would walk in and closely look at each object as if we were investigators inspecting something. When we had finished inspecting, we would walk out with tons of items that were “souvenirs.” While coming out of one of the shops, I saw a sand sculpture of a man. He looked like a statue or some kind of art that represented the wide beaches. I walked up to him to make some funky pose. As I stood next to him, I felt a pile of sand on my shoulders. When I looked back to see what it was, I realized it was his hands. I screamed and then laughed knowing that I was so caught up in my own world to notice. Then I thought, that’s what we all are. We are all that girl posing for a picture, so distracted in her own world that she doesn’t realize the sandman touching her shoulders or the other things going on in the world around her.

We walked around a little longer, and then we saw a tiny painted bench in the middle of two noisy restaurants. I ran over to the bench, just sit on it and look around. As I sat there for a while, clenching my Doritos bag to my chest, I began to notice everything. I saw an old woman walking around giving miniature handmade dolls to anyone she saw. She had the biggest smile on her face, it made anyone who saw her share the same joy she had. She noticed me observing her, and walked up to me. She handed me one of the dolls which had a bright neon purple dress and little braids tied with strings of yarn. She gave me her big smile and walked away, on to the next person. She is one of those people in life who always see the cup as half full no matter where they are. I wondered and hoped I would one day be that woman, sharing my joy with everyone and anyone.

We soon got up and walked towards the sparkling ocean. There was a small cliff of rocks right next to the street that made a path towards the flowing water. As we walked down the path into the water, I felt my toes submerged into the sand and soon felt the cold water just touch my knees. It glided all around me, like ballerina dancers that move so gracefully. I dipped my fingers deep into the water to pick a white shell that was glittering and screaming for my attention. I glazed it with my hands, bragging to my parents that I found one of the most beautiful shells. I then dropped it back into the water and looked all around. I saw the clear blue sky that met the long ocean. I kept thinking to myself that something as small as me, was a part of something as big and miraculous as the ocean.

After finding our way back to the streets, we decided to explore more shops. While we walked along the streets, there was a beautiful church that caught my eye. The building was tall with a bunch of tiny colorful glass stained windows at the very top. As my parents and I curiously walked in, I saw amazing statues all over the high-ceiling room. A door right next to one of the bench rows led to a wonderful garden. The garden danced with flowers of all kinds. We stood in the garden for a longer while than you would think due to my mom’s need for “perfect picture” taking. As I whined about wanting to leave and explore more, I couldn’t help but love the fact of where I am. By that I mean, I have the chance to walk down the streets of Mexico with my parents whom I love very much. I see that as a moment anyone would cherish, bliss.

*this writing piece was awarded 1st place in a writing contest