A Woman Right Now | Short Story

Another fight, another round of crying and praying desperately for something to happen to drag me up out of my financial misery of simply having a small inconsistent income and no money to do anything with.

I went to the plaza to drink a coffee and think. Problem was, I couldn't even create one logical thought. The emotional output left me feeling wrung out and useless. Life during the so called pandemic has me a bit down right now.

This is the story of a Woman Right Now

Especially if you are a single mother.

Perfection hurts - literally, even as I struggle to drag my slightly overweight body out of bed and force it to walk out around the edge of my small town, through the woods, and back around. At times I came close to my target - a decent size 10, but always I find myself settling for 12, then finding out I am at size 16 again. Glad I still have a few pairs of my "fat pants" around, I sigh, and keep trying.

Living in an exotic and enchantingly beautiful far away country has become my burning desire as I put my heart and soul into my independent businesses. Not being an employee, and having a steady income are my biggest drive, even as I try to create my dreams out of hot air, and high hopes.

By the way, I already live in that exotic, and enchantingly beautiful far away country. But carving out a life for my son, and I - aided by my mother, has me at my wits' end.

The natives having been shamelessly raped and pillaged by newcomers such as myself (albeit many generations ago, and at the point of a sword), pens are pointy too, treat me with a weird mix of hate and admiration. I really can't fault them on their unwavering belief that I am already LOADED, and simply laughing all the way home as I carry my buckets of pesos to my tropical castle in the sky, or up on top of a hill.

Sorry for the long sentences.

Needless to say, the odds are a bit stacked in this horse race and I am not the favorite.

They also didn't get the memo that pesos are worthless compared to dollars - if I had the money they think I do, the last thing I would be doing, is trying to earn in pesos. But, Spanish is a challenging language, so something is being lost in the translation, and more likely, the culture gap.

We can add insult to injury with the fact, that many gringos (sorry "foreign residents"), in fact, DO come here to brag, boast, throw around money, sleep with beautiful women, and do lots of drugs.

So, you can imagine my disadvantage. Perhaps the intro to a movie about my life would be something like this:

Against overwhelming odds, and in hostile territory, she puts everything she has into = Staying Alive! The men want to marry her for a blue passport, a blue eyed child, and magic golden immigration papers. Women only want to use her friendship to boost their own image, or get whatever they can out of her. Will her small, but close circle of true friends, a wonderful climate, and excellent quality of fresh food be enough? Tune in next week to find out!

It doesn't matter who I am or what I do. This is the story of A Woman Right Now who is praying every day for a new happy beginning. Who cares about the ending? Stories were meant to be made, what will be the next chapter of mine?

I guess I imagine something like this...

Every day I chatted, and laughed in the park, counting out my pesos to buy a couple cups of coffee, and dream about the future.

Over time, my projects began to work out as the economy begins to reactivate, and by December tourists are beginning to arrive en masse, and suddenly I am working several times a week interpreting for incoming residents and tourists.

As my income increased, also so does my influence once again. During one project, I met someone and began to find joy in chatting and talking to him. Maybe we would get through a few projects successfully, and then he would invite me for dinner. This continues most of a year, until one day...

It's nice to dream in any case.

Where are we going with this plandemic? How are we going to survive when things get even crazier - in a world where love and peace are nowhere to be found? Questions I ask myself daily. Only time will tell. If this sounds like your story, hang on tight, we are both on thin ice.

Too many questions, not enough answers. If that's not a sign of the times, I don't know what is.