This is the collection
of personal anecdotes
or those told by others.
Today it's about one
that someone else told me
was true.
And I myself
wanted to verify
the truth of the facts.
I bear witness.
And it goes like this:
It was around 1950
more or less
when in Barcelona
the Catholic Centre for the Deaf was founded,
as a branch
of the Catholic centre
in Madrid.
They'd organised a football match
between the two branches
that had to be played
away from home.
The Barcelona team
went there by train.
As you can imagine
it wasn't a high-speed train
but a steam train
that left a trail
of smoke behind it.
The Barcelona team
lost eight nil,
like Barça over
the past decade.
Anyway.
Despite the defeat,
the spirit of friendly play
and good sportsmanship
led to new friendships.
The night before
the long train journey back to Barcelona
they decided to go out in Madrid
instead of going to sleep.
Some preferred
to rest
before the long journey
in the uncomfortable train seats.
Except for three good guys,
the rest went out
to enjoy the night.
One of them was my father-in-law.
We deaf call him
"Big Ear",
and his name
is Pepito Solanes.
My wife's father.
He was one of the ones who preferred
to stay and rest.
The others, after messing around
until the morning,
were exhausted when they returned.
They felt almost envious
watching Solanes
sleeping so soundly.
There were only two hours
before they had to get up,
so it wasn't worth
the risk of oversleeping
and missing the train.
Boredom is creative.
And since they were already dressed,
they pretended in front of the mirror
the traces of the night,
and combed themselves
as they were accustomed
to doing every morning.
They also had the courtesy
to set Solanes' clock forward.
And all of them, in a solemn procession,
surrounded him and woke him up.
When one of Solanes' eyes opened
they said: - Pepito!
- We're all ready and you're the only one missing!
- The train is leaving soon!
Solanes jumped further
than anyone ever has from a bed.
He got to his feet
and checked
that the clock's hands
were right and not lying to him.
The group covered
the other two who were sleeping.
And while he, bewildered,
was washing his face,
everyone started getting ready.
For Pepito, who had shaved
against the clock,
it was hard to believe that everyone fell asleep
in record time.
And as he spoke to himself,
he saw on one of their watches
that it was two hours earlier
than what they'd made him believe.
And the darkness outside
confirmed it.
So he laid back down.
Never has anyone slept so stylishly
waiting for a train as Pepito.
Divine youth.