January 1, 2019. Playa Royale, Mexico. Rosa.

Rosa has invited me to join her at her palapa and I am not even Italian. She phoned me after she received my card saying that Ken had passed away so she inviters me to join here so I would not sit by myself by the pool. She is a lovely lady. Last year she three times brought food she had cooked over to us just to be helpful. Rosa is as a little old Italian lady who cooks three meals a day for her husband and to everyone else who is visiting her. Her husband will not eat out and she likes to cook. Last year, several family members were at Playa to celebrate her husbands. birthday. They wanted to take them out to celebrate. He refused. "The food is better at home," he said. End of story. Rosa and I bonded many years ago. I was reading by the pool and she was practicing her swimming. Over the summer, Rosa took swimming lessons at the Y to impress her grandchildren. They teased her because she could not swim. They were coming and she was practicing. She was hopeless so I asked her if she wanted some help. I taught lots of swimming over the years. I tried and she tried but she never got any better. But she introduced me as her swimming teacher to her friends and family. Her grand children were impressed which was the only thing she wanted. I have never seen her in the water since even though I invite her in when I swim. She is terrified. She always sits at the same palapa. The developer of our complex was Italian and many of the early purchasers were from the Canadian Italian group. They had all emigrated to Canada at the same time. Many Italians owners sit with Rosa by the pool. The men play cards and shuffleboard and never sit with the ladies. I love the family story but will not discuss it tonight. It is an American dream except they are Canadians who live in Toronto. I am now an honorary member of Rosa's palapa. I feel honored.