Short Story: "How To Make Change"

The Cambio Man makes change in the street. He stands on the corner across from the bank ATM where big bills spit out in denominations too large for the local street vendors and merchants to break. The Cambio Man breaks bills.

He breaks bread with bankers, too, and keeps his cut, though he still lives in the old neighborhood. He walks past the old stores. He runs the bases with the children on the old ball field north of the harbor. When he works, he holds his Cordobas behind his back in a thick folded stack consisting mostly tens and twenties, with the 500 Cord notes and U.S. $20s on the inside of the wad. The Cambio Man dresses nicer than everyone else and stands in the shade. He doesn't sweat. He wears a pair of khakis, white-soled shoes and a crisp plaid shirt.

"Cambio?" he asks. "Cambio?" he asks. "Cambio?" all day. "Cambio?" every day.

Read the other 629 words in the short story "How To Make Change."