'Clubbing' in Brazil … is there such a thing? YOU BET!

Hello again everyone! Wow! With just two Blogs down the responses I have received have been so heartwarming and now I hope you understand why I feel so wonderfully about this town we all dwell in together.

So with any new town after you get settled in your home (we chose to live inside Brazil even though we were offered fantastic possibilities outside), you set out to search around town for what there is to do should you find yourself head in your hands, nerves like short circuited energy pulses and the non-stop echoing of Barney in your brain. Having a toddler, it is a true honor to have adult company once in awhile were you don't have to talk about just the kids and can focus on just being the adult in your world. I am not what you would call a "Mommy group" kind of woman. I come from a world of laying aside your Mom responsibilities once in a great while and walking out into the world with your friends for a good old fashioned cocktail dinner with lively conversation and plenty of laughter to spare. We all know that is not a lifestyle, just a break. So I proceeded to go out (alone, I mean, daddy had to stay with the little guy and I didn't know anyone at the time) and brave the new town and see the "night scene."

First off you all should know that I am really tall (and I mean REALLY) so that in itself is a shocker to people to see this rather auspicious looking female walking into any establishment of alcohol alone. I decided to pick a place and just see how it went. Being the consummate observer, I was more eager to observe and learn over a cold beer or perhaps some wine versus going out to get ripped. There comes a time folks where getting ripped just isn't feasible anymore. (Anyone who has EVER overdone themselves over 30 out with José Cuervo for a night can relate.) Moderation is key to keep your senses sharp and your conversation sane. The first establishment I entered was Sally's Bar. There behind the bar stood a woman of many tattoos and the most beautiful, dark hair (the kind every woman envies) I have seen in many years. She immediately smiled at me and walked over and invited me straightaway to have a seat at the bar and said to me, "Well yours is a face I don't know!" I ordered my beer and she went to get it.

I sat and looked at all the faces in the place. Some look haggard from years of overdoing what should be a brief respite versus a hobby and others quiet yet open. The key thing I noticed was I was able to ascertain these things because THEY WERE ALL STARING AT ME. Now perhaps to a weaker woman this would have been intimidating, but not me. I welcomed it. I have cats; I know how the ritual of the stare down goes.

So as my lovely bartender with the 1,000-watt smile comes back she says, "So, I don't know you and that won't do, tell me about you. You definitely are not from here." With that she began to laugh and I was struck by her kind eyes. She is not the kind of woman that one would look at and think would be compassionate because they wouldn't get past the tattoos and jeans and take time to really look at her closely. Her face held wisdom, pain and triumph. She spoke like a mother and had the feel of a sister. Her hands were one's of hard work and lotions that don't cost $100 a bottle. She smelled of whiskey, shampoo, cigarettes and perfume. One would think that wouldn't be pleasant, but we are talking about a bar here. It was nice, plain and simple. There was an air of complication about her only belied by her simple speech and open nature. I knew immediately, I LIKED HER. I sat and talked with this woman for 2.5 hours before realizing I didn't even know her name! She spoke of life here in Brazil and schooled me quickly on the politics, social sciences and class structure of this wondrous town we all reside in together.

I watched as she greeted each person individually and took time out to counsel those who were downhearted and just in need of an ear and a smile. I watched her calmly but firmly let a few patrons know that they had indeed had enough and then watched her find them coffee and a ride home. As the noise began to subside and the night to wane, I saw a certain type of pain cross her face. I wanted to ask why, but chose not too. Such intimate details could never be revealed easily. I was wrong, she talked to me of her deceased husband who's death had just about been the death of her and how she had found Christ who provided for her and given her new insight into this crazy world we live in.

I realized my time was nigh to go home. As I slipped a $10 bill out of my jeans and laid it upon the bar, I listened (eavesdropped) as she was talking to man who had lost his job at Great Dane just 90 days prior due to layoffs and cutbacks and saw her genuinely feeling his pain. He asked for nothing and then I saw something that changed me viscerally forever. She picked up that $10 dollar bill I had tipped her and gave it to that man for food. See? She had already fed him for free and allowed him to just be. She gave him the one thing that is priceless, his dignity. It wasn't a handout; it was one citizen, one friend helping another in their time of need. I found myself with a coal-sized lump in my throat and knew that even if I never returned to this bar, I would never forget … SALLY.

Don't judge a person by their appearance. Sometimes we make decisions in our youth that remain on our skin as we age, become wiser and become just another Angel the Lord gives those who need them most.

Stay tuned…..