![]() But one of my bis-abuelitas, my great grandmother on my father’s side, Berta Astor, maiden name Mendoza a.k.a. I called my paternal grandmother "Grandma" and my maternal one "Mama Ana" or "Mami Ana" so I don't exactly associate the words abuela or abuelita with my grandmothers. It made me think of not so much my abuelitas, at least not at first. But like I said, reading this quote felt good. These self-exploratory mini memoirs are leading me ‘somewhere’, no doubt. This year I’m taking Vanessa Mártir’s essay-a-week challenge (her hashtag is #52essays2017), but so far I’m doing it more like twice a month which would turn into to 24 essays at the end of the year, if even that. Push myself where exactly, I’m not always sure. From teacher workshops to notary public, medical billing, and proofreading certificates, I’m always trying to push myself and earn validation. I cried when we landed as if it were my long lost homeland, as if it were “Mi Tierra”, even though it never was (as far as I’m existentially aware!)Īs someone who has scrambled around to acquire various credentials over the years, this was a nice article to run into. I played my “Rose and Charcoal” CD a few times in the plane during the nine hour flight. We also went to Brazil a couple years earlier mainly to see my old high school friend, Juliana- who’s from Belo Horizonte (pronounced ‘ Orizonchi’, like ‘ Monchi’). There was a Brazilian guy sitting a few seats to our left crying at the saudade of it all. We went to one of her concerts in 2006 when she was in New York. It’s really called, “ Verde, anil, amarelo, cor de rosa e carvão ” (“Green, indigo, yellow, pink and charcoal”) or “Rose and Charcoal” for short. He made me a copy of her 1994 album mistakenly labeling it, “Bread and Charcoal”. We were at his friend Sylvester’s house when I first heard her soft, gentle voice and I just had to know who she was. He’s the one who first introduced me to her. My dear friend Rodrigo, whom I was intermittently involved with, tells me it’s because she missed Brazil too much. She studied opera in Italy for a while but returned to Brazil. Her last name is pronounced “Monchi” not the way I automatically want to pronounce it, since saying it correctly makes me think of the Monchhichi commercials I used to see as a little girl. Marisa Monte is from Rio de Janeiro, Brazil. ![]()
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December 2022
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