My husband thought this entry should be called Amabilidad mexicana y una sandía podrida. He’s a little upset about a certain watermelon we bought the other day. You see, there is a verdulería near our house, as there almost always is in Mexico. When the owners arrived, we were immediately impressed. They really know their stuff. They would tell us about different types of fruits and vegetables, how to choose them and various ways to prepare them. They would never sell us something that wasn’t in perfect, ripe condition. That’s all over now.

They stopped talking about their produce a long time ago. Ever since, the quality of the service has gone down hill. So the other day we bought a watermelon. The son asked me if I wanted to taste it after he had already bagged it up. “No,” I said, assuming that he would never sell me a rotten watermelon. After all, we’ve been regular customers for a while now and felt that we had established something similar to a friendship.

By the time we got home, we were already anxious to whip up some fresh agua de sandía. We cut it open and there it was: rotten on the inside.

My husband was fuming. I really wasn’t upset. It was, after all, also my fault for not knowing how to pick out a good watermelon. My husband explained that it is just another example of hypocrisy. So many people are kind and helpful and generous as long as it benefits them. Once the charm wears off, once the store is established, you realize that the kindness only goes so far.

I think what really got to him has more to do with community and solidarity than anything else. Here in my neighborhood, we all know each other. All of our neighbors greet us when we pass by. We look after one other, share plants, and lend a helping hand whenever we can. There is no doubt in my husband’s mind that the son knew what he was selling us. So, then, a simple transaction becomes an offense to community solidarity. One offense becomes two, three and slowly, we begin to point our fingers and say, “There’s the bad watermelon.” I guess every community has one.

Source: Multicultural Resource Center