Requiem for a Tienda

14 April 2014

Miscelánea La Gloria

1989 – 2014  RIP

The local newspaper says that drug gang violence is at its lowest level in several years in Laguna, but common crime seems to be on the rise.  That is certainly true in Lerdo, and it has brought down a treasured fixture in my neighborhood.

Gloria’s little store has been robbed several times in the past couple of years, but the most recent was the most violent.  Two robbers with guns stormed into the store.  One held a gun to Gloria’s head while the other guy short  holes in the ceiling.  That was just too much for Gloria and her husband Hugo.  They closed Gloria’s tienda and move the stock to Hugo’s tienda a few blocks away in another neighborhood.

Gloria’s tienda has been more than just a neighborhood store for the past 25 years.  It has been part of the social fabric of the neighborhood.  The ladies gather here to exchange news and gossip.  We have watched Gloria’s three children grown up.  We have felt a little part of the family of Gloria and Hugo.

One day as I was leaving the store, I tripped on the curb and would have fallen to the ground but for the quick action by Misrain, Gloria’s oldest son, who was able to catch me.  The next time I came to Gloria’s, that piece of curb had been removed and replaced by a ramp from the street to the door.  I was told that my near mishap had prompted them to make that improvement.  What’s not to like about a store like that?

Gloria’s is the place where I met Nery in 2006.  From that meeting grew my adventure as an English teacher which has profoundly affected my twilight years.

Gloria, we will all miss you and your tienda.

You can visit Gloria and Hugo here.

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