Dear Santiago

Dear Santiago,

Sup?…

Forget the small talk and let’s get straight to business.

You’re an interesting city. Really! But I’d like to ask you a question. If you lived in a world where apples and oranges contained the exact amount of nutritional elements but tasted differently, would you notice the difference between the two?

Why am I asking you this you may ask?

Taking a stroll in your streets, I saw wealth and order. You are beautiful but familiar, as an apple and an orange both taste beautifully great.

The other day, something happened. As I was taking a jog with friends, I met a dog. We did not talk, but it followed us. Abandoned, alone, it took us as potential company and jogged our way. Ever since, I’ve been noticing the lonely dogs, surviving in the streets, living among humans in hope of finding entertainment or (if they are to have relatively sophisticated minds) a meaning to life.

Ever since, the mountains, the streets, the fresh air, the traffic, the wealth, the poverty, the food, the people and everything else there’s to notice in you became clear and unique, as if you are now a part of the definition of my personality and actions.

I have trouble understanding why it’s the dogs that helped me understand you better. But that doesn’t matter, because it simply is.