Weekend in Review

The rain let up a little on Saturday, so I headed out to Pirajá for a meeting with the Cinco Mulheres (5 Women), and hoping to be able to attend a Festa de Candomblé in the evening. These things happened, but in the midst of a laid-back, fun-filled Saturday afternoon.

A couple of women were celebrating birthdays this weekend, so Fabricio's grandmother hosted a festa (party) at her house. When I arrived, Joelma was grilling steaks on the front porch. Beers had already been opened. They immediately sat me down and started filling a glass for me. Over the next couple of hours, lots and lots of other folks showed up. They were almost all related to the birthday girl, Paulinha, either by blood or by marriage. It turns out that Paulinha is married (?) to Bola, who was one of our keepers during Mutirão 2004. They have a son, Iago. The party spread to the back yard (yes, she has a back yard!) and to the moderately sized living room. In other words, just like a party in the U.S., it spread to all parts of the house. One of Fabricio's aunts had made a lovely cross-stitch/crochet, and asked Fabricio to draw her a new design and trace it on fabric. He was occupied with that for a couple of hours. The kids played in the midst of the party, occasionally stopping by a grown-up (any grown-up) for a little rest and affection. Hugo has definitely taking a liking to me. By mid-afternoon, quite a lot of beer had been consumed. Isabel's brother apparently insulted one of Joelma's friends and they got in a fight. Others jumped in quickly to keep it from becoming physical. Fabricio's grandmother was mortified that there was a fight at her house while I was there. I told her not to worry. Joelma is really a piece of work. It turns out she isn't flirty with just me. She is just an intensely emotion-driven person. Whether she's hugging and kissing, posing her voluptuous body, or arguing with someone, she's always ultra-passionate.

Luciano Paru showed up. He looks quite different. He's let his hair grow out and has it in short braids. He also has braces. He and Fabricio have grown apart because Luciano isn't really interested in helping the Quilombo anymore. He's focused on his own goals and interests, primarily capoeira (which he does professionally), African drumming, and trying to get to the U.S.

Across the street, Bruno, Casilda's oldest and brother of Gigo, Caique, Tio, and Jamele, was washing motorcycles. Apparently this is one of the odd jobs he does to contribute to the family coffers. The boys had music turned up quite loud, and occasionally broke into dance moves that they've seen in videos. These boys can really dance! Back in 2007, Caique and Tio brought roars of applause at our ITEBA samba party by being the first people on the dance floor. It was interesting that although these neighbors all know each other well, they keep an artificial distance between them which seems to be based on family relationships. In an odd way, it reminds me of an Indian caste or clan system, where extended families live amidst other extended families, but they always respect the dividing line separating the clans.

In the late afternoon, while the party was still rolling along, a group of us went to Isabel's house to have the meeting about project costs at QZ. Attending were Isabel, Casilda, Jocelita, Fabricio, Luciano, and a couple of young women who gave me the impression that they were interested in helping run things at QZ. I later learned that they were both "graduates" of QZ, having attended while it was still up-and-running as a day care facility in other temporary locations. The meeting was quite lively because of course we had all had a bit of beer. It was truly community democracy in action. Jocelita sort of ran the show, because she was the one who had gathered information about getting power and water hooked up. (Plastering the upstairs was delegated to Daniela, who wasn't able to come to the meeting.) First of all, they told me they didn't need to be paid a minimum salary for two months, that they'd rather use that money for getting things up and running at QZ. (At least, this is what I think they said. They glossed over it quickly and I didn't fully understand. Jocelita speaks incredibly fast.) Earlier, at the party, Jocelita and Fabricio had a "discussion" with the person who would do the electrical work. It was close to an argument, because he was trying to say the buidling needed a couple of electrical boxes, and furrows had to be made in the bricks upstairs to run the wires. Jocelita and Fabricio disagreed, because, naturally, at their houses wires just run willy-nilly wherever they have to go, without recognition of any type of code or safety feature. The gist of the discussion was that they wanted the installers to give them a list of all the materials we need, and WE would go together to buy the materials. This will save money because they installers won't mark up the prices. It's a dubious plan, in my thinking, but they're in charge.

The dynamics of the meeting were incredibly impressive to me. They expressed themselves quite honestly, and when there were differences of opinion, they worked through those differences until there was consensus. At times, everyone spoke at once. When someone had something important to say which the whole group need to hear, they would shush the others to restore order. I'm not sure why the way they ran their meeting impressed me so much. I guess its because I have always been under the prejudiced perception that cooperation and planning among a group of people required skills obtained through formal education. It's clear, however, that the education my friends have received in the neighborhood, having to resolve disputes and find ways to co-exist peacefully, is just as effective as learning how to discuss things in a classroom. Perhaps it is better, since the things they deal with are "real" and directly affect their lives.

Around 6:00 pm we went out to find the Candomblé festa. It was just around the corner in someone's house. The house was bigger and nicer than those of any of my friends. Apparently, they had already done the "ceremony," but were willing to give us a taste of things. I was introduced to Exu (an orisha), who was inhabiting (?) a roguish-looking fellow in his mid-20s with a cigarette hanging out of his mouth. We took seats, and he started moving around the living room singing candomblé songs. Everyone accompanied him with rhythmic clapping. Copious amounts of beer and liquor, cigarettes and marijuana were being consumed by Exu and those he interacted with. Songs began and ended suddenly and (to me) randomly. Exu started hounding one fellow in particular. I say hounding, because the guy didn't want to participate. He tried to leave, and Exu blocked his way. I started to feel uncomforable, because the fellow was clearly distressed. He was a little bit effeminate, so it almost seemed like he was being teased by Exu because of his sexuality. Then, suddenly, he just sat down with his head in his hands in resignation. At that point, the women took him into another room. He emerged dressed in the garb of an initiate. From that point on, he was the primary singer along with Exu.

I must say, the whole experience was extremely bizarre to me. I've been to candomblé ceremonies in terreiros (houses of worship) where all the elements of the religion are clear, from the sacrificed animal to the central pole around which people dance, to the instruments, offerings, clothing, and colors. What I witnessed in this house came across to me as a "wannabe"version of a candomblé ceremony, a "slummed-down" version where lowlifes could use it as an excuse to get drunk and high. My perceptions are incorrect, of course. The owners of the house were responsible elderly people. One young woman was taking pictures to commemorate the occasion. Everyone behaved just as they were supposed to in the context of candomblé ritual. The orisha Exu is the African god who is most misunderstood and disrespected by non-practitioners. He is the trickster, the prankster, the pimp, the whore. He is often depicted as the devil in the Christian community because he does not behave well. He brings out all the repressed or sublimated emotions in the people around him, including alternate sexual identities and lust. Naturally, Joelma showed up and played the part with Exu, but she didn't really have her spirit in it, just her body. She took turns with Exu drinking liquor from the bottle, trying to outdo him and show him up. In my opinion, this is really dangerous, because one can't outdo a "god."

Around 8:00, we left so I could catch the bus back to Rio Vermelho. I hope this was my time on the long trip for a while. I should be moving out to Pirajá Tuesday or Wednesday. The women insisted that I move out there as soon as possible to help with the purchasing. I will stay in the guest room (yes, she has a guest room) at Fabricio's grandmother's house until the water and power on installed. Hopefully, this will only be a few days. In that time, I will also have to buy a bed or cot, chair, lamp etc. I'm a little apprehensive, but I'll feel much better about it after I know I have internet access. I'm going on Monday afternoon with Sergio to buy the cellular modem for my computer.

A few other random memories of the day:

Fabricio wants to bring together Mestre Batata, Junior Amorim, me, and others to create a new hybrid type of orchestra, and make a CD.

I learned that Joelma has twins, that her husband committed suicide a few years ago, and that she's going to Spain for six months in June. (*sigh of relief*)