Happy Sábado ☕
Today we are in Bogotá, Colombia.
A small peluquería on a Tuesday morning that feels like a Saturday.
Two women who have known each other for years.
And some news that just arrived on a phone. The phrase this week is one Colombians reach for the way you reach for a tissue. Not to fix things. To keep going anyway.
THE SCENE 🖼️
Valentina: Ay, Claudia, mirá. Me acaban de escribir del trabajo.
Claudia, look. They just texted me from work.
Claudia: ¿Y? ¿Qué pasó?
And? What happened?
Valentina just said "mirá" before she even showed her the phone. That is the tell. She already knows the news is not good. She needs a second before she says it out loud.
Valentina: Que no me dieron el ascenso. Se lo dieron a Rodrigo.
They didn't give me the promotion. They gave it to Rodrigo.
Claudia: No me digas. ¿A Rodrigo?
No way. Rodrigo?
The scissors stopped. Claudia put them down. In a peluquería, that means something.
Valentina: Sí. A él.
Yes. Him.
Claudia: Valentina. Eso es una injusticia.
Valentina. That is not fair.
Valentina: Sí, bueno. Al mal tiempo, buena cara, ¿no?
Yes, well. When the weather turns bad, you put on a good face, right?
There it is. She did not say it fast. She said it slow, almost to herself. "Al mal tiempo, buena cara" is not a shrug. It is not "whatever." It is a woman choosing, out loud, to keep standing.
Claudia: Ay, no. No me vengas con eso ahora. Tenés derecho a estar brava.
No. Don't come at me with that right now. You have the right to be angry.
Valentina: Ya sé. Pero si me pongo brava, me lloro el pelo recién lavado.
I know. But if I get angry, I'll cry into my freshly washed hair.
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