Since I moved haven’t taken the actual time to reflect about the family I
am living with and there is a non-excusable reason but a pretty good one: I
have been enjoying spending time with them. Since October, wow. November,
December, January. We are now in January.
I want to present you the characters that are part of my story here in
Brazil, with the hope that you might taste a bit of the exquisite loving
family I am enjoying.
First of all, I would like to point out that my Brazilian family is a big one.
My host parents have a beautiful life story from which the result of a life
of hard-work gave fruits to a house with a beautiful garden that Batista
and Maria Izabel, take care of. They are my host parents who kindly and
selflessly have taken me as a daughter.
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I have two sisters and I used to have a brother, Marcello, who is not
physically present but rather amid the love this family has for him.
Gislene is my oldest sister who has three kids: Carol, Amanda, and
Arthur. Carol
is a seventeen-year-old with the most self-discipline I have seen. She and
her mom share the same passion for cleaningness and I really appreciate
their strong characters.
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Amanda is recently 11 years old and she is, I would say, the best
friendship I have cultivated here in Garopaba. Amanda is a special girl to
me and I know from now that I will miss her. I cried as I saw her crying in
her primary school graduation. She is smart, extremely empathic and
emotionally intelligent, she is funny and curious. The first thing I
thought was that I hope that she ever gets the chance to do something as I
ambecause she would eat the world with her curiosity.
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My youngest nephew (yayyy I am an aunt here and I love it!) is Arthur, who
stole my heart in companion with Marcelly, my other nephew, who happens to
be 3 years old as well. They are the ones that light my childhood and make
me not wanting to be the conventional “adult” who does not play anymore.
Instead, they nurture y willingness to be cheerful and silly, and creative.
They spark my youth and I feel empowered by that strength. I am not scared
of enjoying being myself and I love it.
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Marcelly’s mom, Ana, is contemporary with me. She is twenty years old. Ana
is kind and respectful and caring. They all are. I felt welcomed from the
very start to open discussions and have conversations on topics that
perhaps were unfamiliar to them and to me. I have learned as day pass
different ways of being caring, a good mom, a good team.
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I love them and I know now that they will go home with me. Because they are
within me.
I appreciate their willingness to include as their own and honestly, I
try to do my best to give what I receive by being the best version of
myself. I am really happy the concept of family continues to expand with no
man-made limitations of blood, race or citizenship.
