Live in the moment: touch

While this is a one-week later, post-pilgrimage post, touch as it relates to Rio is still alive and well in my memory: sun-baked sand shifting under our feet while viewing Friday's World Cup Match on a ginormous screen at Copacabana Beach with Inamar, Arlinda and thousands of celebrating Brazilians (and other nationalities) of all races, classes and backgrounds; a cool breeze off the cold Atlantic surf while watching inclusiveness personified on Rio's beaches; the vibrations from our perches on bus seats as we swerved and bounced on rocky streets and roads inside and outside the city; the rough twists and turns on the tram ride bumping us momentarily against our fellow passengers; the cobbled stones laid out in mosaic designs on sidewalks and streets, uneven and worn from years of use; the waxy, silken feel of our candles held during the Wednesday evening Taize service; the cool, smooth, even, floor of our hotel room; the regular pattern of woolen up-and- down-up-and-down needlepoint stitches on the colorful kneelers at St. Luke's at Christ Church where Eduardo is rector; the sometimes awkward feeling of being different, not understanding the native language, the way things are and the customs. Pervasive for me is the feeling that positive change comes one step at a time: in a green, living organic garden next to a rambling favela alive with inhabitants; in a song sung by everyone present--Bishop to priest to urban homeless to American visitors--with spirit during a street Eucharist; in the work of Lidia and a committed group of community women creating quilts from scratch; in the smiles on children's faces at school when, through singing and hand motions, they understand a language other than their native Portuguese; in the tears of a widow when she talks about her loss in a safe, holy sanctuary among others who ache for her. The feeling that our friends in Brazil are resiliant agents of positive change and that we are the fortunate and blessed ones to witness their good work is a feeling I will cherish for a lifetime.

The most important touch of all the touch I experienced on this pilgrimage is human touch. This is what we All Saints' travellers felt deeply when in community with our hosts: as we connected through the two special services at the Cathedral; as we celebrated the street Eucharist with the homeless; as we sat together, Brazilians and Americans, all Episcopalians, and ate lunches and refreshments lovingly prepared in the church hall; in the fellowship we enjoyed daily with many new friends-- especially in the candlelight of our final dinner on the terrace of the hotel overlooking the the sparkling lights of a city of contrasts; in the intimacy of laughter and conversation with Inamar and Eduardo in their welcoming apartment with their children and Arlinda for our last "just-us time" together. In asking questions and listening hard. In working to understand and not impose. In attempts to hear with open hearts. In the customary, genuine bear hugs accompanying each personal greeting and farewell, our deepening relationships and our newly-discovered commonalities with people who are now much more to us than simply names. The human touch. Because of these human touches, our relationships will most certainly move to another, higher level of friendship, understanding and caring among us, the traveling All Saints' pilgrims, and between us and our dear Brazilian friends.

Quoting John Robbins' insightful book, "Healthy at 100", " Remember that love is necessary for great relationships, but it is not sufficient. ... They take work, and lots of it."

We pilgrims are people trying our best, in relationship with others, to do what God would have us do in the world. Amen

Living in the moment: tastes

Seeing as how I have no idea how to post pictures yet (need to request a tutorial from my roommie!), a few words will need to suffice tonight Another amazing day! Finally, some local shipping in Santa Teresa...wonderful boutiques filled with the work of Brazillian artisans. We participated in a sewing circle organized by Sao Paulo women and enjoyed a delicious lunch they prepared. Tonight we were part of a Taize service at the cathedral. Beautiful music, powerful prayer and soft candlelight. It misted and was cloudy mostly all day, but our All Saints' pilgrims and our larger community including our new friends caused this day to be warm and happy. Arlinda, the cathedral's very cute and lively deacon, drove Elizabeth and me to an ATM to get cash since the local ATM ran out yesterday. It was an exciting and fast car trip--which some might dub slightly harrowing. Arlinda is a character in the very best All Saints' sense of the word! We loved it.

OK, so today is tastes. I've decided to try to id my Top 10 because while there are oh-so-many more, bed is beckoning:-).
10. Beans and rice. From the 2006 student pilgrims' tales, I had assumed this would be daily fare. It hasn't been at all. In fact I've eaten it only once (yesterday at the kilo restaurant lunch in Araras). It was absolutely yummy!
9. CAKE at breakfast! Today's we think was coconut. Past days we've had some kind of poppyseed-like cake. Yummmmm. With fresh fruit and steaming coffee, it's divine.
8. German sausage sandwich for a morning snack enroute to Araras yesterday. Inamar guaranteed it would be delicious and she was SO right.
7. Cold, local beer imbibed in by Richard and me to celebrate the sweet fact that Brazil was ahead halfway through last Sunday's World Cup soccer win. Here's to the next win (and another celebratory beer or two) on Friday!
6. Cookie found, bought and shared by Richard--coconut and sugar and crunchy. Very sweet and very good.
5. Warm cheese bread given to us as a surprise by Arlinda at the coffee/pastery famous restaurant in central Rio on Monday. It hit the proverbial spot!
4. Goolash, a German dish, served today with boiled potatoes at the luncheon prepared by the cathedral's Quilting Group. Hot, filling, outstanding.
3. Smallish fresh bananas. I'm with Richard: these local bananas are sweet and delectible. We've eaten them at our hotel breakfasts and witnessed a huge, heavy bunch of them being harvested at the organic garden.
2. White chocolate pudding with cookies along the edges at the kilo restaurant in Araras. Unbelievably good. Tasted French. Sweeter than most Brazilian desserts I've had.
1. Molten, warm, thick, liquid chocolate. I have to go with this as my #1 Choice. Sipped or spooned from a cup yesterday in Petropolis, this wicked chocolate liquid was totally decadent. Della And I split a small cup (the ungluttenous thing to do--weren't we good?). Truly, the taste was out of this world divine.

Here's to the incredible tastes of Rio.

Karol Kimmell showed us once again that music is indeed the universal language. The laughter and the smiling eyes of the children in Aras reflected our own smiles and joy at being with them. They sang for us and with us and we all delighted in the experience. The beauty of the location surrounded us all. Inamar and Arlinda ordered perfect weather for the trip. Only as we were headed back to Rio did the anticipated shower come. It did nothing to dampen our spirits and our time together.

Mudslides

Thank you to everyone who has expressed concern, but the recent mudslides in Brazil are way to the north of us.  Keep those affected by that disaster in your prayers.

Dustin and the hot chocolate -- he didn't have any left to share. I asked.

The hot chocolate was amazing. Hot. Chocolate. Nothing else. Dustin documenting our trip.

Our dogs, Jess and Samba.