Tuesday, March 9, 2010

Goodbye City Life!


With the census upon us, I was wondering what constitutes a city?  "In the US, a city is that part of a state which has incorporated itself as a city to organize various extra services over and above those provided by the state. These can range from sewage treatment and extra police to a mosquito-abatement service." A city can range in population from millions to just a handful such as Maza, ND population 5. 

Many years ago my aunts from Los Angeles stopped in Miami on their way to and from Cuba. Having left all their belongings to their needy family on the island and knowing they had to spend a night in Miami, they arrived with only the clothes on their backs and their nightgowns. That night they were staying a couple of blocks from my grandmother's house, and they decided that evening to pay my grandmother a visit … in their nightgowns! Upon their arrival in Los Angeles and after recounting their whole trip, my aunt told me about this little adventure. You walked the city streets of Miami in your nightgowns? I exclaimed. City? What city? Miami is a small country town. (Miami es un pueblo de campo.)

Everything is relative to what you compare it to. I presently live in a city, but really…c'mon?

Two summers ago my aunt and uncle flew in to see us. She doesn't refer to Miami as a small town anymore!

No comments:

Post a Comment