Salam (The Greet)

"Who are you?" shouted a boy with a smile on his face, holding a spear on his left hand, & a hand shake on the right. He got off the mode of transport, trying to regain cautiousness after the slumber. "Did you see an old man around here? he's wearing a farmer hat, with a black shirt?" asked him. "Oh! You mean, uncle Albert, yes, he's with my folks. Come, i take u to them" the little boy pulled him to the cottage although he made an effort to refuse. "You're awake, good. We make a slight detour, just getting some supplies, i hope u don't mine" gently asked the old man. He nodded & sat himself in the nice, comfortable place the villagers called home. Then, a huge man came in, "Who might you be?" He explained himself to that man, who obviously the head of the family, that he's just a hitchhiker, & just needed the help of the old man. "If you're a friend of uncle Albert, you're a friend of ours". He was surprised, back at the old town, they were never this friendly. Then, the man showed him around, teaching the way they live, the way they look at life. He was fascinated & realized every people has their own way of finding happiness. The villagers were very enjoying everything they do, like they loved it, not like they were force to do it.

The old man said that they'll spend a couple of nights, seeing that he was very enjoying himself with the children, learning new tricks with the people. A smile of the guest has brighten up the day. At night, the people gathered together & ate dinner while discussing about the daily events, problems & about the newcomer. He was greeted well by them all, as if they already knew him. That night, they made a feast just to celebrate the presence of him, with the great food, drinks, the laughs, the smiles, the joy were everything to him. He never had a birthday party when he's with his uncle, because every time he celebrated it, it reminded him of the loss of his love ones. But that night, he was reborn. On that night, it was his birthday.

After long laughs & talks, they all went to their cottages, dimmed the oil lamps, let the night enlighten by the beauty of the moonlight. He was given a very cozy room with the old man, over a soft rattan floor with some sewed up leaves as a blanket. It's a new experience, a new feeling & he hoped it would never disappear. One other thing, he saw someone that was very familiar, but he didn't had the courage yet to talk to that person, who he had maybe mistaken with someone else, maybe it's just his imagination. Was it?