Bridges

Monday 6^th November, 2012

Today is Día de la Constitución Española, a national holiday. As a result everything is shut. All and sundry will be shut on Wednesday as well as that is Inmaculada Concepción day which commemorates the Immaculate Conception of the Virgin Mary. Being Spain they have a good way to make these two holidays one – a Puente (bridge). That means that 2 one-day holidays become one 3 day holiday and as it is attached to a weekend many Spanish have gone away for a break. Two or three Spanish families have taken up residence at a house a bit further down the track from me. Ordinarily I walk the dogs past the house once a day but after yesterday I think not. The troupe, there were about 12 in total, were walking past my house as I returned from a walk with the dogs. My two are very friendly, but a little excitable so I put the worst offender, Charlie, on the lead I carry for such emergencies. All was well and good. Jake did as he was told and stayed close, until he could resist no longer that is. Up he ran, tongue lolling to say hello to the stragglers, a man and his three daughters. He did not jump, bark, snarl or do anything to provoke the screaming and running around that ensued. Thankfully the father had the sense to tell them not to run, by which time I had grabbed Jake. I did not apologise, just told a still screaming girl that Jake was a friend. She did not seem convinced. This is one of my pet hates. You do not have to like dogs but for the love of all things holy, when one runs up to you do not start screaming and don’t run.  Why don’t parents teach their children these things from the year dot? My dogs are not vicious, but they are boisterous and while ‘playing a game’ they could have knocked one of the children over; but that would have been it. Different dogs on a different day may have a rather sorrier ending. For their children’s safety parents should teach their kids the basics of dog safety. Safely behind our gates, Charlie took on territorial mode and barked at them until they were out of sight. I think any bridges with those neighbours may have been burned.

Día de la Constitución Española marks the day of the national referendum in 1978 to approve the Spanish constitution. After nearly 40 years of dictatorship under Generalissimo Franco, and 3 years after his death, the Spanish set up the constitution for the way they live today. I have been reading about the Spanish Civil War and some of the atrocities carried out in this region (Andalucía) were appalling. Villages were literally wiped off the map. Mass graves are still being found across Spain from those dark days. Thousands of refugees from Málaga and the province fled to Barcelona and Madrid ahead of Franco’s army. Being a very rural community they were seen as “wild, half-Moors” by the ‘sophisticates’ of the cities. I need to read further to understand why Franco was so harsh on the people of this region when one of the ideas behind the coup was to stop the erosion of tradition. You couldn’t get more traditional in the rural landscape of southern Spain, so why the murders? As I say, I need to read more to understand. It is important to know the history of a place in which you live in order to understand the culture and attitudes within it. That is what is wrong with immigrants in so many places – don’t try and change the culture in which you find yourself, you don’t have to like it (though I would suggest not moving there if you do not like the culture) but understanding it makes it a lot easier to get on. Understanding is a bridge across the chasm of ignorance.

One thing I cannot ignore is the dogs’ insistence on an early morning walk. It is not good enough that I take them out at 11; 10 at the absolute latest, thank you! My walk on Friday saw me wander into previously uncharted territory. As a result I once again found myself up a hillside staring back at where I wanted to be. The dogs loved it; my knees hurt. Still it is good for the soul, taking circuitous routes home. Hopefully I will not encounter the Spanish families again; but we’ll cross that bridge when we come to it.