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I want to preface this story by saying that I am not advocating breaking the law. Perhaps my storytelling is a way for me to publicly confess the wrong I have done and what you shouldn’t do. 🙂
We had just sung “Happy Birthday” and cheered loudly while David blew out his 15 candles.
My Moroccan friend at the safe house had made him a birthday cake with Orange Blossom water, a fresh loaf of bread, and a traditional couscous. David grew up in Morocco, so that was his personal request when I asked him what he wanted for his birthday dinner.
“Look who’s pulling up!” our friend exclaimed. “The police are coming!”
We scrambled to all find and put on our face masks as fast as we could.
“Separate! Separate!” we yelled at the kids who were gathered on a slab of concrete, sitting indian-style, playing a game on their phones.
They had been playing soccer in the field, walking around, eating, drinking, and being merry. They had just settled into a nice group of seven—just one over from the “limit” in Spain of SIX people per group.
Mask Panic!
We panicked! I couldn’t find my son’s mask and mine that I had tossed in the snack bag earlier.
I quickly threw my 22-year-old the first mask I had my hands on, and he fastened it around his ears.
“You have my flowered mask on!” I said frantically, handing him his solid blue one now in my hand.
Our friends scattered throughout the park where we had gathered to illegally celebrate David’s birthday after school.
“It’s a remote place in the countryside. The police definitely won’t venture up there to find us,” I wrote in the invitation text. “We can stay in small groups and wear masks the whole time.”
Yeah, right! We did not keep our word. We did not obey the rules. We did not abide by the law. Now, the police were venturing up here, and they were about to find us!
After wearing them all day at school, everyone’s masks had been immediately removed in the car as we drove to the “party spot,” and our groups were not divided appropriately. There were seven kids in our two families, not six, and all the kids wanted to be together.
I sat with my oldest son, Timothee, on the bench and prayed that we wouldn’t get in trouble.
Confession—Breaking the Law
“We are breaking the law,” he said to me sarcastically.
He was right. We were having an illegal birthday party. There were 11 of us gathered, and we weren’t wearing our masks.
Until now . . .
We held our breath as the police patrol car pulled up into the parking lot next to our parked cars. They sat there for a moment staring at us. We looked at them, realizing that what they were witnessing now was in accordance with the law. We were all wearing our face masks, and we were separated into smaller groups . . . if they counted. I’m sure they did.
Thankfully, the police only stayed for a few moments, then pulled out of the parking lot and back down the gravel country road.
“Those people called and turned us in,” our friend said.
Just after arriving at our “party spot,” a small car had pulled up. The police showed up 10 minutes later.
He was probably right. It was very strange—the timing, the location.
Thankfully, the police never got out of their car. Our friends would have risked a 600 euro fine, and that may be the price per person, not per family.
Because of the new lockdown restrictions in Spain, there are certain cities that are blocked (entrances and exits). Police controls are scattered along the city’s borders.
Our friends are allowed to get out of their city for educational reasons—to take their kids to and from school everyday. Legally, there should be no stops along the way.
On the other hand, our town is not in lock-down, so we can freely circulate within the non-locked-down cities and zones. The school zone is also a “free zone.”
A Worthy Risk
In our family, we had already celebrated three “Quarantine Birthdays” in March and April 2020. Many of you have probably done the same. We never imagined—in our wildest nightmares—that we would be doing it again in October 2020.
Yesterday’s birthday party was an exception. We decided to gather in the small town where the kids’ school is located for an after-school celebration, so the kids could at least be together for a short period of time.
It was risky. Maybe it was even stupid.
In any case, it was so worth it. We had a great time, and the illegal, surprise birthday party with his friends was the highlight of David’s 15th birthday.
Thankfully, we didn’t get caught, and we weren’t fined. If not, that would have certainly blown our birthday budget!
(I record all this and tell these stories in an effort to document the days.)
—THE CULTURAL STORY-WEAVER
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LET’S WEAVE CULTURES!
Have you broken the “COVID restrictions” in any way in an effort to maintain your freedom? For your son’s birthday, what would you have done—taken a risk or obeyed the rules?
We invite you to tell us your own cultural stories and global adventures . . . as you engage with the world, breaking down barriers, building bridges, and “weaving cultures!” Write about them in the comment box below.
