Why Life as a Gringo is Pretty Okay
“Are you happy?” my friends ask.
After moving to Brazil, the question seems funny to me.
Happiness comes so easily here.
I haven’t even considered the possibility of not being happy.
In a strange sense, I felt more lost when I moved to the American South than South America. While the language barrier may be a hurdle, I feel connected to the people in this city in ways that seemed so difficult in Houston.
Here’s Why
Shortly after arriving I discovered a pretty full boat of bright-eyed visitors who came from far away, English-speaking lands. People just like me.
Sure there’s no place like home, but there are also few things as wonderful as traveling such a long distance and seamlessly finding people to connect with. Especially when you are all wandering down the same yellow brick road, chasing dreams and following love.
As we simultaneously navigate around this beautiful city, we fall scattered on the scale of life certainty. Some people beam with confidence, reciting their purpose and career goals. While others daydream over açaí and contemplate their innermost questions.
What am I doing with my life? Can I make my passion a sustainable career? Will eating açaí every day be really good for my health or bad for my butt?
Yet despite our range of self-assurance, the one common denominator we all share is hope.
Hope that we will find our way…that something great will work out. We know our expiration date, past the safety net of our passports. We feel the urgency of the clock; we feel the energy of this city. At times we feel fearless, brave and Brazilian. Other times we feel homesick, awkward and Gringo.
We ride in taxis, trains and buses; and of course “take long walks on the beach.” We embrace every gleam of sunshine and tan our bumbums like Brazilians. We drink caipirinhas until the garrafa’s empty and hold onto the memories that make our hearts so full.
Throughout our days we eat tapioca, feijoada, and even develop a strange love for farofa. We learn how to speak Portuguese, or usually, just embarrass ourselves trying. Simple interjections like Ta! and Oi! and Psssp! become a natural part of our daily happenings.
During our Brazilian journey, we greet the world with fresh eyes and open hearts. Through every encounter with every broken thing, we realize life goes on. We compare this world to the one we once knew and find relief hearing other foreigners who get it too.
The people here move to the beat of a different drum, and we see the beauty in shifting mindsets.
At various stages in our trajectories, from young and reckless to committed and pregnant, we all intersect beautifully in the same space and point in time. Walking, passing, hoping. Some come and go swift and fierce, like motorbikes on the street. Others surprise you with their kindness and company, offering companionship for the long haul.
The true impact of each intersection remains a mystery of the present, as we know the dots cannot be connected forward. Instead, we find ourselves somewhere near Avenida Vieira Souto, gazing into the vast blue and pondering what lies ahead on our own horizons.
The energy of this place cannot be bottled up; all we have is this moment.
So we settle into our beach chairs and tap our Havaianas together to shake off the sand.
Man, there’s no place like Rio.
