Hello

About 2 weeks ago, as I was doing my regular walk on the sand, this kid, out of the blue, said hello to me. I was surprised. He is probably between 5-6 years old. I was surprised because normally, when people say something to me, they say it in Bulgarian. They assume because I’m here I speak the language. So, how could this kid assume that I speak English?

A little over a week ago, it happened again. The kid said hello to me again. My curiosity was killing me. I thought of asking where they are from on my way back. I saw them sitting on the sand, farther from the water, where I was walking barefooted. I switched my direction towards them. And they knew, the two dads, I was approaching them. They started to smile as they watched me walk closer to them. I felt a little nervous. I was gonna do it anyway. I said, “Hi, I was just wondering, where are you guys from? Are you from the US or from UK? I asked because it was the second time your son said hello to me. Usually, they talk to me in Bulgarian first.” I found out, the kid is 

Russian, but his nanny in Russia is from the Philippines. The dad owns businesses in Miami and also here in Sunny Beach. The other guy, also owns businesses in Bulgaria and has been all over US. He speaks very good English. 

It’s too cold to walk barefooted on the sand now, so I just walk on the boardwalk. Yesterday, I planned to stay on the path I knew, but I saw a couple going another way, and I thought of trying to see where it led to. I think I saw one of the guys I met before, but he was alone so I was not sure if it was him and he was on the phone. I knew where I wanted to go, just to be close to the water, even if I can’t put my feet in it. I read walking on the beach has health benefits. But then, I crossed paths with this lady in blue jacket who just came out of the car. She went where I wanted to go, so I just kept on walking. I tried to avoid being around people, for privacy and because of the pandemic. 

I’ve reached the end of the path. Going back, the same guy I saw earlier, waved at me from afar. So it was him after all. He invited me to sit with him. The lady in blue jacket heard us talking in English and approached us. She asked if I was from the Philippines. I said, “Yes, I was born in the Philippines.” The guy (I can’t remember his name, it’s hard to pronounce it) told her I own a studio here in Sunny Beach. She asked, “From the Philippines?” I replied, “From the United States.” It turned out her husband is from the US too. She’s Bulgarian, but her husband is a US citizen. They moved here from Miami. We were talking about my situation, how I can only stay here for 3 months. And she said that maybe I could work at her company and that way I would be able to stay here permanently. She started a real estate agency right before the pandemic started, so it’s on hold right now. She invited me to walk on the beach with her and we just kept on talking. We connected on Facebook and Messenger and made plans to hang out in the summer. She knew I was leaving in December. 

I would say our meeting was meant to be. We happened to be in the same place at the exact same time. And to think it all started with a “hello.” 

Quoting Frodo from The Lord of the Rings, “Remember what Bilbo used to say? It’s a dangerous business, Frodo, going out your door. You step onto the road and if you don’t keep your feet, there’s no knowing where you might be swept off to.”