I still have the echoes of that party in me.
I still have dreams at night, when we all continued to prepare that party together.
I still have voids in me to fill, voids that remain when someone leaves us.
But I have no doubt that the most beautiful way to deal with these emptiness is to celebrate life, and that is what happened on Saturday and in all the days leading up to this event (I would even say years, years of expectation if we would ever reach fulfilling this promise of my grandfather, which I realized when I went to Castrense radio, to the heritage program with the testimony of Dr. Francisco Colaço, to be a man of promise, it was worth it, for knowing more stories about my grandfather, but also for having seen my grandmother Delfina gained a voice, first when I told her that we were going to the radio, I immediately said that I wasn't going, that my grandfather was the one who liked those things, I told her: I'm going, mom and you, we'll help each other and it will be a conversation like so many others that we have 3 generations together, there she was convinced, and when she got there the difficult thing was for her to stop talking).
We tried to fulfill Mastro's promise, we investigated and discovered recipes for special popias, the so-called alconcoras, and as a family we made more than 300 popias, the so-called frasca, to offer to those present in the middle of the night and to hang on the mast.
We also made cookie dolls that represent our grandparents.
We cut hundreds of tissue paper ribbons as a family, with the support of some friends as well, discovering and improving each one's designs, we made lots of flowers in crepe paper, Aunt Maria made colorful paper balloons and mother and grandmother challenged us. I started crocheting flags in the evenings.
We reused the structure of the São Martinho Parish Council's mast, which had five charolas, three spheres and a flag.
Saturday, July 13, 2024, was a very beautiful, very beautiful, very emotional and memorable day for our family, it was the day we fulfilled the promise that my grandfather Bernardo had made more than 25 years ago, before leave abruptly.
The promise was that he would make a song at the baldão and a mast of promise, when there was light in the Escanchados. And Saturday there was light, a lot of light: a delicate and delicious song written by my friend Odete dedicated to grandmother Delfina, who is the great companion, great mother, great grandmother and great woman who always allowed my grandfather to dream.
There was singing at the balcony with a table full of companions with my grandfather welcoming them, followed by a song of longing with a lot of emotion and nervousness, ending with a loud round of applause that made the heart tremble, and again that Grandfather's voice echoing in that house full of people standing and shaking, wishing everyone his affection, just as he wishes for his own, and may God put them all well in life, another brave round of applause follows for this man who was my grandfather, who was a force of nature and who, 25 years after his departure, can still be remembered and move people around his memory.
We then left the house to inaugurate the mast with the Violas Campaniças group from the Valorização Center and with Pedro Mestre singing and teaching/reminding how round dances were done.
It was another sublime moment for me at sunset, as my grandfather would say, it brought together “old people and young men” around the pole dancing hand in hand, smiling and wanting to be happy at that moment, I couldn't resist, at a certain point I let go the camera and I also joined them, in other words: the mob was armed.
The dance then begins to the sound of accordionist Gonçalo Valério, who started around 22 pm and only stopped singing and playing at almost 3 am, five hours of always cheering up the people who danced around the pole, stepping the fragrant and traditional herbs: sedge, lemon balm, flea killer, pennyroyal and mantrastro, the sides protected with eucalyptus branches that we had gone to collect the day before (I know it's illegal, but you can't imagine how it gives me life and it felt good return to the open-top van lying on top of the load of eucalyptus).
This involvement that was created around the mast and the cante ao baldão made me see “whose land is this?”, it made me realize that, even though things are not always going well, these people from the Village and surrounding areas come together , they come together as a community and help each other... I still don't quite understand the magic around this event, but there was magic there!
Was it a beautiful and poetic party? He was! And why? Because there was a lot of planning, a lot of preparation, a lot of dedication, a lot of thinking and a lot of hands helping.
Raising the mast was not just raising a decorated stick, it was a revival of memories and affections.
Thank you to everyone who in some way contributed to making this day happen, and now comes the dangerous moment of listing names:
– Parish Council of São Martinho das Amoreiras who supported us from the first moment to the last, who in addition to lending equipment helped us at various times in assembling this mast: president Nuno Duarte, Madalena, Toino do Ferroso, Zé da Graça and Alberto .
– Aldeia das Amoreiras Improvement Commission, namely Cristina who helped us with the necessary licenses.
– Center for the Valorization of Viola Campaniça and Cante de Improviso, at Cante ao Baldão we had the players: Carlos Loução, Afonso Silva and Francisco Coelho and the singers: Manuel Graça, José Guerreiro do Corgo da Metade, Gomes da Funcheira, António da Alagôa, Pedro Mestre, Luís Baldão, Manuel Ferreirinha, José Manuel do Ribeiro, António Luís do Tacanho, Flávio Guerreiro, Daniel Gregório, Joaquim Pereira, Florêncio Maria, Amílcar da Zambujeira, Joaquim Loução and Joaquim Bento; and in the bell circle it was Pedro Mestre with Carlos Loução, Flávio Guerreiro, Maria Duarte, Duarte Guerreiro, Catarina Silva, Afonso Silva, Francisco Duarte, Francisco Coelho and Margarida Silva.
– Rádio Castrense, Dr. Francisco Colaço, who publicized the event and made a special program in honor of his grandfather.
– Volunteer Firefighters from Ourique who had a prevention vehicle at our party with two firefighters (Daniel Afonso and Jorge Neno) helping with whatever was needed.
– Maria Odete do Gavião for her generosity and talent in writing, singing and playing a song dedicated to her grandmother.
– Maria José Barriga, who presented us with the recording of her interview with her grandfather carried out in July 1996.
– Motoclube de São Brás de Alportel, which provided the tent and some kitchen equipment to set up the bar and sound with microphone and speakers that allowed the singing to be heard outside: Patrícia, Alain, Lili, Luís, Ana Teresa, Rui, Carla, Matilde, André, Lena, Moedas, Sandra and Miguel.
– Companies that supplied us with food and drinks: Padaria de Garvão da D. Graça, Padaria Santana da Serra, caracóis Arroja, Talho Damásio and Pinguinha & Bota, lda.
– Friends from the village: Horácio, Nelson, Bilharó, Filipe, Rosie, Fernando, Luís…
– Afonso Family: Adília and Zé Maria who shared with us their experiences with previous promise masts, Daniel who experienced with us the enthusiasm of organizing the mast, prepared a large parking lot for us and guided the eucalyptus branches, Lena who helped us with cooking for so many people, Marco and Toino from Belém who helped us make the hill more beautiful with their painting).
– Friends of São Brás de Alportel: Helena, Manuela, Lara, Marília, Violantina…
– Friends who helped with the party: Maria Luísa, Norberto, Drika, Bruno, Ana and Manel.
– Goes Family: my grandmother Delfina’s brothers with their children and grandchildren who made my grandmother very happy to share this day with them.
– All the friends who encouraged us or/and were present at the party.
– Bernardo Family who were the drivers of this party: António José Bernardo, Delfina, Graça, Bela, Maria, Margarida, Beatriz, Bernardo, Mariana, Rogério, Tóju, Aléxis, Paulo, Isaura and Constancinha.
Soon, in the documentary “Whose land is this?”, you will be able to follow the organization and implementation of this traditional event: the promise pole and the singing at the bucket.
THANK YOU FROM AND TO EVERYONE!
Author: Ana Beatriz Bernardo de Jesus, the girl who loves listening to people and who stubbornly goes after tradition, people's stories and life
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