(For the Greater Glory of God) |
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Alberto's "alpargatas"
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Alberto's "alpargatas" (mountain village running shoes) It all that happened during the ecstasies, one of the things
that caught the attention of the villagers the most was how quickly the girls would
run when they were in ecstasy. When they were out of ecstasy, they ran normally
like any mountain girls would run, girls that were used to working hard, but
they didn't run any faster than all the rest. However, when they were in
ecstasy, they ran incredibly fast. They seemed to be taking normal steps,
without running in any exaggerated manner. They didn't fly either, because
their feet were touching the ground. Whoever tried to follow their pace found
it to be impossible; not even the youngest, fittest boys in the whole village
were able to keep up with them. When they were finally able to catch up, the
girls were as if they'd made no effort whatsoever, while everyone else was
sweating and out of breath. If that weren’t enough, as the girls were running,
they didn't even look at the ground, which was all stones and mud, uneven and
full of things to trip on. Their head was always looking up towards the vision. Alberto Mazón was a young man at the summit of his physical strength. He
was famous for being the fastest runner in the village. When his neighbors
went down to the village to buy bread, salted sardines, or
other non-perishable goods, they came back up talking about how fast the girls
would run, and how nobody was able to keep up with them. Alberto found that
odd, and one day he said to his wife “Manolita, get my ‘alpargatas’
together; tonight I'm going to run alongside the girls.” Alpargatas
are a type of shoe, with a sole made of esparto grass that was typical during
the summer in Garabandal. Normally in Garabandal, everyone would use clogs
- a rustic wooden shoe that protected from the cold and the mud - but to be able
to run, the "alpargatas" were the best thing to wear.
That night, the girls had already received two interior calls from the Blessed
Virgin. At any moment, they would leave their houses in ecstasy. With his
"alpargatas" well tied, Alberto was waiting outside Loli's house
ready to get running. When Loli's father, Ceferino, saw him he said, “Make
sure your ‘alpargatas’ are well tied because you're going to need them.” Alberto
replied very full of himself, “What for?” Ceferino said
jokingly, “Because you're going to lose.” “We'll see about that,” replied
Alberto. |