He's a Convert Now

We got new outfit for Caleb to wear to worship services that he wore last week in Tennessee, but we didn't get a good enough picture for me to showcase in the post about last Sunday. He wore the outfit again today and Mom made a point of taking a picture of Caleb wearing it before changing his clothes this afternoon.

In case your wondering, this is a guayabera onesie. A guayabera is a linen shirt that a lot of Latin men wear. When we first started seeing them down here, we referred to them as Cuban shirts before we learned the proper name due to the number of Cuban men that wear them. We have since learned that they are not limited to use by Cuban men, but are instead worn by all types of people includeing gringos (myself included). Guayaberas range from very casual to very formal with long sleeves and french cuffs. It is quite common to see several at worship on Sunday mornings.

Due to the prevalence of guayaberas, we knew we had to get one for our little boy the first time we saw a store that carried them in onesies. We decided that Caleb needed something new to wear on our upcoming trips, so Mom went and picked one up on here way to get me last Tuesday before going to the airport.

Wearing a guayabera is a symbol of assimilation into Miami culture, so I got one a while back because we want to embrace the culture down here for as long as we are here. And it makes perfect sense for Caleb to be part of the Miami culture since this is his birthplace.

Today was the first time Caleb wore his Guayaberra to worship service in Miami. He got a lot of compliments from Latinos and gringos alike. As one acquaintance said, (a gringo from Texas who has lived here many years) you are now officially converted. Even though they are not the same color, a guess we will both have to wear our guayaberas some Sunday in the near future.