Stories Inspired by Life in Rural Brazil
I’ve joined a writing class. In Portuguese. Yeah, it’s going as you’d expect: it’s a lesson in humility. Take action or stop complaining The thing is, you can complain about something or you can go learn to do better. I’m good enough at Portuguese these days that I know I have my failings and where …
How to stumble your way through the humble and humiliatingRead More
I poured my morning cuppa today and looked down and realized this old boy was looking a little worse for wear. And this is the best one of the lot. Ceramic floors are really unforgiving. Nothing makes me long for the architecture (and hardwood floors) of my native New England than one more shattered coffee …
The ants were swarming all over the gate. Why? Who knows? They’d never done this before, but tonight, there they were. I paused a moment to size up their black motions in the shadows from the car headlights. There was no way to unlock that gate without standing right in the middle of them. Without …
My students were bickering over who had stars on the Awards Wall. One was proud of her achievements, but disgruntled that there were other students’ on her heels–soon to achieve the same thing she did. Negativity is not allowed in my English classes. I watched the dynamic for a minute, conjugated a few verbs in …
Waiting in line is over-rated. Brazilians don’t really do lines. Unless otherwise directed, they tend to form a large, organic crowd and all push forward to the front. Why is this important? Banks, grocery stores, bus stations, they’ll probably have lines that people respect. But if you’re trying to get through a market or a concert …
12 Things About Brazil the Guidebooks Never Tell YouRead More
I have this cringeworthy memory where I’m pretty sure I offended a whole roomful of people of color repeatedly. I mean, it’s one of those really bad memories where it flashes back and I mentally go: “LA-LA-LA-I-CAN’T-HEAR-YOU. LA-LA-LA-I’M-STILL-A-GOOD-PERSON-SO-GO-AWAY-LA-LA-LA-LAAAAA!!” Sigh. It’s an “oops!” memory of Epic Proportions. All of us probably have them (well… everyone except maybe Donald Trump, …
When I first arrived, it seemed to me that those crazy Brazilians sure liked to chop things down a lot. “That’s a gorgeous, living being!” I gasped. “Hah. It will grow back,” they said. Nowhere was the debate strongest than around the base of the huge tree in our back yard. Towering and shady, it …
Hey y’all—I just wanted to share something with you. I’m wicked excited. I started this great course (Happy Birthday to me! Thanks Dad!). Why? You might have noticed that there’s been a lull in the writing over here at Minhas Crônicas do Brasil. Part of that is life with a toddler and a full-time job. Part …
“Heard of rainbow hair?” I said, “You wanted me to go more platinum blonde. Ok. Deal. And when I do, I want that.” I showed her a photo. She said, “You’re feeling radical?” I said, “I’ve always been radical, you just never asked.” But clearly this was beyond my hair stylist’s comfort zone so I …
