38th and Davis

Parsnip, rosemary, thyme, and garlic. The smells wafted through the grated ceiling of the market below. All around the market people were busy, grabbing at this and that, pushing those on their left and right, waiting and hurriedly watching for the next big bargain to pop up in front of them. The place was lively on Saturday mornings in the late summer, the Yuppies there to find the next greatest thing, the Rich on the prowl for a good deal, and the poor also on constant alert for a next-to-nothing price. The differences between each of the classes, though, meant nothing to the dealers who lined the walls and aisles, greedily taking all that they could from each and every visitor.

I suppose it’s a living, pinching a few extra pennies from each sale as to bring home that extra dollar or two at the end of the day, but not one that I wished upon anyone, including myself. Within those passageways were treasures that only the most committed of shoppers would find. The long, cluttered paths between storefronts left no sign of such deals, but deals there were to be had. If one who was so inclined to do so were to peek behind those curtains to see all the glories that they held, the rest of the market and curtains would long be forgotten. For behind such curtains lay the very dearest of treasures brought by each vendor. Such treasures would normally have been stowed away at home, now, only being removed from their dark unknown places in hopes of a great trade with another merchant as to improve the vendor’s wealth. Of course, with each vendor so secretly guarding their cache it was hardly feasible that a transaction would ever occur.

The days of trade had been this way as far back as anyone might have imagined. There were not many new merchants in the time since I had moved into the loft down the street, and not many had left in that time either. The market left everyone who visited feeling fully satisfied by days end. When rollers shut windows and carts were packed, I would leave my spot at the atrium above all the hustle and go back to my flat.