“Tengo Hambre”

In Spanish you don’t say “I am hungry”, you say “I have hunger,” the same way you’d say I have diabetes or I have any condition. It seems so different than saying I am hungry to me. It almost pulls this need out of the body and makes it clearer and more matter of fact. What if we did that with other basic human needs. “I have sadness” when you are sad. “I have love,” when you seem filled with love and can give it to others. Last night a man came up to our outdoor small table at a restaurant on the square in Coyhaique and said, Tengo hambre and pointed to the leftovers on Susan’s plate. She nodded and he scooped up the few bites left of a burger. He looked at the bun from my veggie burger, and I nodded. He pointed to Susan’s salad and lifted the bowl, but he couldn’t take the bowl so he poured it into a napkin. Tengo hambre, he said again under his mask and walked away. I can’t decide if it was the saddest thing or the most efficient, perfect way to end a meal. Or both, I guess.

How direct “Tengo hambre” is. And without judgment. I am a human. I have hunger. Here are four other humans who had hunger and satiated it and have food left on their plates and another human sees the food and declares, Tengo hambre.

That was our first night here in Coyhaique in the Aysen region of Patagonia. This morning we’re headed out to the Reserva Nacional for a hike on 2.22.22.

Here are some photos of Coyhaique:

Stay safe, everyone. ❤️