Carlito entered the world on a cool summer night; but he was empty, listless. He didn’t have a path or a purpose. He questioned the meaning of his life. What was he here to do? What did his maker will him to accomplish? As he wandered the streets he felt hollow and ashamed, as many of us have while we too experienced crises of faith. He felt called to a greater purpose, but to what? What direction should his paper mache hooves take him? Sometimes he envied his friends. They stuffed themselves full of candy, trying to fill the void that they couldn’t explain. Was it healthy, this lifestyle? Was it right to mask the emptiness with something, anything; as long as they did not have to feel hollow and alone? Most days Carlito would have said yes, as he sought some greater meaning to his life, but on others he would sigh and merely say, “Perhaps.” You see, when he was honest with himself, Carlito envied them their satiation; however empty they truly still were.
One day all of that changed. Carlito saw her. The woman that changed his life. In an instant he knew a love so complete, so enveloping that he would give everything he had to make her smile. He would charge through fire to bring her laughter. He would wade through the world’s oceans a hundred times to bring her even the smallest bit of pleasure. And in that instant he knew, though it shocked him to his very soul, that he would die to give her joy.
The woman, his angel, shared her burdens with him. She filled him to the brim with her hopes and dreams and fears. He bore them for her, even as he bore the precious bottles she had given him to carry. At last he knew completeness. At last he had fulfillment. He knew friendship the likes of which he had not even imagined could have existed before. For too short a time they went everywhere together. They took photos. They visited faraway places. They explored beaches. They dreamed, and they LIVED.
But joy is a fleeting thing. It is a sad state of the human condition that change must come for good or for ill. Pure happiness much be seized in the moment and cherished in the memory of those that go on. Every week, every day, every moment brings changes that can alter our lives in unforeseen ways. So it was for Carlito. In one moment he and his lady love were dancing on the beach. In the next, a group of thugs came. He put himself between them and her. His only thought for her safety, and the safety of the burdens she had placed on him, in him. How could she go on without those things? He had to protect her! He had to try to save her! But how? He yelled for her to run, but she did not. She stood and watched as the group advanced. They beat him. They tore him apart. They took the bottles from his remains with glee. Carlito looked at her. He begged her to turn, to not watch. Instead she knelt and took a bottle. She uncorked it and put it to her lips. She looked at the group and laughed. He searched her eyes, traces of sadness were there, yes. But so was joy. Carlito heaved his last breath.
Peace and redemption comforted his soul. His life had been short, and brutal, but he had brought joy to the one he loved. He had made the world a better place, however briefly. As his soul lifted upward and heavenly music filled his ears he realized that there really is no better accomplishment than that.
His name was Carlito. He was a piñata. A piñata with a belly bull of liquor minis, and a heart full of love. His quest? Share his love and boozy bounty with the world.
