Mewaaaaaaaaaa!

Our eyes met across the street. I felt a spark. I know he did too.

“This way!” I howled to my wife and children. “Be quick now.”

Quick we were. We rushed across the street from where we’d had breakfast in a small cafe. We blew past the tired old woman who was hustling to put the canopy over the animals. A makeshift petting zoo at a Farmer’s Market in Ames, Iowa on a Saturday morning.

That’s where we met. Alpaca and me. That’s our special place.

***

“Who is my boy? Who is daddy’s special boy?” I shouted as Alpaca eagerly ate what I can only assume was Alpaca feed from a paper cup I clutched in my hand.

Katie hid her face in shame. My sons pretended they didn’t know me.

“Take a picture, Katie! Take a picture of me and my special man!”

Katie begrudgingly captured the photo above. And about a million others. I was enthralled by the beast. I wouldn’t let the small children in to pet him. He was mine. All mine.

“Get me more feed! More feed, I say! Alpaca is hungry!” I howled at my sons Solomon and Samson. They brought me more feed. And my special Alpaca friend gobbled it up.

Soulmates. Ships passing in a night. I felt a bond with this animal. If it were socially acceptable, I’d have opened the gate, saddled Alpaca up, and ridden him off into the sunset. The adventures of Sam and Alpaca. Oh, the troubles we’d get into together! Oh, the mysteries we’d solve! We’d right wrongs, clean up towns, and save the girl.

Alas, kind reader, Alpaca wasn’t mine to keep. He belonged to the bewildered old woman who seemed to be running the pop-up petting zoo all by her lonesome. I took pity on her as we walked away.

“Are you here all by yourself?” I asked her.

“No,” she grunted. “My family is around here somewhere.”

“Well, tell them they better start helping.”

She chuckled.

“Oh,” I didn’t say, “by the way. I’m going to steal your Alpaca and him and I are going to go on Quixotic quests together across the Upper Midwest.”

Instead of stealing Alpaca, I gave him a final pat on the head and walked away.

“Mewaaaaaaaaaa!” He howled after me, taking Katie and my boys by surprise. I think they thought I’d been projecting a special relationship on Alpaca. No, ours was a reciprocal connection. A sweet moment lost forever in the fields of time.

***

I spent the weekend in Ames, Iowa with my family. Katie’s cousin was in Iowa for the weekend because her kids were in a track meet. So we drove over to meet them. Spent a relaxing weekend near the pool. Ate too much food. Walked around campus at Iowa State. Go Cyclones.

I haven’t explored much of Iowa since we’ve moved here. Most of my adventures since have been in Iowa City. Ames was a pleasant college town with a great farmer’s market.

And Alpaca and I shared a moment that cannot be described with words.

So instead, I’ll just write this: “Mewaaaaaaaaaa!”