Lance’s Last Night

So, inexplicably, there are three Nashvillians who are studying at CSA in Antigua. Lance and Alicia are my two compatriots, and we’ve made a nice little friendship over Tennessee pride and volunteer work. Lance, I believe I’ve spoken of before, is a fantastic person to have around. Always bringing up the mood, making people smile and sending out exciting and positive energy. So it was with a heavy heart that I learned his five months in Guatemala was at an end and he was headed back to Nashville. There was a goodbye party planned at the home of Mark, and we met up at the park to trek over to his house.



The house, I think I’ve explained a bit, is fairly large. Three bedrooms, a large master suite on the top floor with a nice terrace overlooking Santo Domingo, a patio with hammocks and a huge kitchen with tons of counter space. On this counter, when we arrived, were two large dishes of kebobs, chicken, beef, and veggie. I was astounded. Fresh ceviche and some mango salsa for appetizers and quite a bit of Gallo and Sol. Lance, Lexi and I hadn’t eaten dinner and made quick work of the salsa. Eddie and Alicia had eaten some cold frijole sandwiches and I think were excited for some freshly grilled vegetables.

Before the meal commenced however, Mark had to light the grill. A task difficult in drizzling rain and really cheap charcoal. The guys worked for about an hour to light the charcoal, drying it out over the stove and over a candle flame. Meanwhile, we ate ceviche and flew.

Let me explain.

Another guy here, Avatar (Matt), is a yoga instructor. At some point, Mark jokes to Av to “fly” one of the girls. No one had any idea what he was talking about, but I was curious. Av put his mat down on the patio floor and I was the first brave soul to see what this flying was about. As it turned out, it was some serious yoga balance work on Av’s feet. I was balanced on his feet, stretched out, turned around, flipped over, and hung backwards, all without ever touching the ground. It was amazing.



At first the whole group was laughing, thinking it supremely awkward to have one’s head so near Av’s manly parts. But after a few minutes, I could hear the laughter stop and then Lance goes, “Miriam, what does that feel like?” It was really great. I had to lean my body into his feet, hold his hands, then lift my feet from the floor. When Av’s legs were straight, all of my weight was on his bones and hamstrings. I stayed suspended for probably about 15 minutes, doing various poses. When I was worn out, nearly everyone else had a go. Lance’s flying was probably the funniest though, since at 6’3” he fit neatly into Av’s crotch. Will came out of the kitchen holding the kabobs, and nearly dropped the bunch from laughing when he saw Lance in that position. It *is* awkward, but also, the sensation of balancing and stretching is fantastic, and Av was living it up.



Later on that evening, piling into Mark’s 4Runner, I felt about two inches taller. In fact Lexi commented that her hands touched the ground perfectly now, and Lance just kept talking about Av’s toes. From the house we went to a local bar that Mark and Lance always went to. The door was closed and no lights were on outside. To be let in you had to pound on the door and wait for Angel, the owner, to look through the little door window and see if you were cool enough. It stays open very late, and early in the afternoon, and there’s no telling what the atmosphere is like when you’re on the street outside. It was a great spot, and I hope I can find it again for when my friends come to visit.