Thursday, January 7, 2010: Part 1: The Ranch: A Farm is Always A Home

When I lived in Tulsa, I meet the fabulous Jamie and her family. Jamie and her two sisters are artistic, smart and generous. Their Mother lives on the Ranch, acres of beautiful land outside of Sapulpa, Oklahoma. It is only about 30 minutes away and in the heart of beautiful country nothing like the city. Grass, trees and trains and violin music all embody the Ranch. Jamie and her family took me in and became my Tulsa family.

The Ranch holds a special place in their hearts, so it was always a special place for all their friends and adopted family. Mama Jo teaches violin and has a heart of gold. I cannot count how many times I ate and laughed and laughed around her wood table. Nor how many times I heard stories about their father who had passed away and was sorely missed. I wished countless times that I had met him in person.

When I meet Ernani, he told me about the Farm in Illinois. His Grandmother lived there and it was one of the only places he ever felt truly safe. It held a special place in his heart because his Grandma was there. She was a one of kind women, also generous. I knew exactly what he meant. I thought of the Ranch and my parent’s home where I felt the same things. 

Just before our last day in Brazil, Ernani said he wanted to go to the Sitio, a ranch outside of Maceio that his Dad owns and that he remembered liking the last time he visited Brazil. He remembered the birds and wanted to see them again. We also knew we wanted to go to the beach again before we left.

Thursday, a friend of the Magalhaes family, Andrea, came by to visit us. As she was visiting, Eduardo called about going to Sitio. We invited Andrea to go with us and she said she could drive. The plan was to stop by her apartment and pick up her niece Julia.

We got ready and piled into her car. It was a warm day, so driving with the windows down and knowing were headed to a place with a pool and near the beach was pleasant. Her little red car was a stick and she maneuvered the streets like an expert. We went around big trucks that were stopped  in the middle of the roadway and slid perfectly into the tiny parking spot on the bottom level of her gated apartment.

We took the tiny elevator up to her apartment, white and sunny and open to the air. Her daughter and niece were there and a little dog of theirs. They had a balcony on the North side of the house that gave a view of the ocean. They were moving soon to a different apartment. I could not help but imagine what it would be like to live in an apartment with a view of the ocean. Heavenly I think.

We piled back into the car. Julia had spent the first few years of her 10 year old life in the U.S. and even went to grade school a couple of years there. She could speak English, but wouldn’t. She could understand us, so we could talk to her. She taught me some words, like excuse me. She was beautiful and fun. She and I and Ernani sat in the back seat and talked and laughed as Andrea drove us to Sitio.

Andrea had a pretty good idea how to get to the ranch from the little village it was alongside. As she drove the main road that lead North out of town, I recognized the turn off to Pajucara’s house that we passed. It was new territory after that turn.

She drove to the little town and through it. The pavement ended when she pulled off the main road and this village was authentic Brazil for me. The houses were side by side and some were markets and delis. People sat outside in the shade of the awnings on tile sidewalks that ran up the sides of the houses and walls. It was dusty and beautiful. The houses were all colors: light yellow, green, blue. Not a tourist was present, except us. And, I was obviously a tourist. Not many redheads in Brazil. Not many people who burn in the sun unless that is desert sun and then they only lightly tan. Oh how I miss that tan and how I hated to cover it back up with winter clothes when we got back to the States.

We got lost in the little village with only 3 roads, but Andrea eventually found the right lane road to Sitio. The lane road was covered in shade. Trees overhung the road and chickens walked across it. We pulled up to the house, which was covered in orchids and birds. Cages and flowers hung from every eve.

It was a ranch house: wood and plants. Eduardo was in the kitchen cooking lunch for us. He made me a vegi salad: red peppers, beats, tomatoes. He also made me fresh shrimp and rice. Everyone else had steak. As he cooked, Julia and I ate buttered bread and talked a bit with him when we were not exploring the place. We saw beautiful orchids and Andrea eventually bought two of them. We swam in the pool and ate. We laughed and talked and enjoyed the afternoon.

Us kids, Thais, Ernani, Falvio, Julia and I, also went up the hill to see the ocean and Thais’ horse. The coconut trees lined the hilly hillsides and the ocean seemed to meet the trees from our angle. It was worth the climb. We went back and took a dip in the pool that had a fountain on one end. When you stood under it, the water massaged your head and back. It was cool and refreshing.

After a quick swim, we decided to head to the beach. It was our last day in Brazil and we were longing to go to the beach. We were to have one of the best beach experiences of life.