I AM NOT MY HAIR!

¿Hola? This is all I hear as I sit and people watch. With blank stares, children and adults alike approach me and say ¿Hola? This is not foreign to me for I feel like people have been amazed to see a Black person in Argentina and they don´t know what to do; so they stare.

Not adverse to the attention at first, I become slightly paranoid and think everyone is looking at me. On some occasions, I get treated like a celebrity. I receive nice looks, smiles, waves, and then get asked to take pictures with people on the streets and half naked women who are performing in street parades :-). Yet, on this given occasion while touring through Salta and the surrounding areas, I was sitting outside with some new found friends from Germany and Holland drinking a beer, and once again I receive the blank stares and ¿Holas? from the local children. Yet, they stare so intently, like they are about to do something or afraid to do something. All of a sudden a hands attack my face, thinking they were going to hit me or something but they reach for my hair. Next thing you know I have several hands touching my hair and smiling with amazement. WTF?? Do they do this to everyone; apparently NOT as the locals are laughing at me and so are my German friends who candidly take pictures of my embarassment. They slowly move down from my hair and touch my face and arm. "MORENO" they say...yes I am black. It is very weird to me that they never seen a black person before but I allow them to continue on their first encounter with a black person. If all could be so priviledged. ;-)

I wonder, is that what everyone else wanted to do to me as they stared prior?? If so, what happened to our childlike inquisitiveness (I think I just made up a word...anyways)?

Once they finished groping me, they asked if I was a wrestler and wanted to see my muscles and then compared muscles to my German friends. It was quite comical actually. Then they should us theirs; then challenged us to arm wrestling. To entertain the children I went back and forth with them, acting weak then going strong. Then to try to overcome our strength several children ganged up on us. After about several matches, I grew tired and told them I didn´t want to play anymore.

Soon, they pieced together that I spoke English and this one especially inquisitive child decides he was going to try and learn how to speak English from me. I tried to teach him how to say "Hello" and "How do you say..." It turned out to be quite a difficult thing for they couldn´t get the right pronunciation. Yet, I enjoyed myself working with him.

Hopefully after their encounter with me, they realize I am more than just my hair.

LIVING FULL OUT AND MORE THAN JUST MY HAIR...