| Christmas
Bouquet: Not what it seems to be
I
was admiring the wild flowers in front of our house when a friend passed by,
"Those weeds are a deception. They look like beans
but they aren't. See that one over there. It
reminds one of rice, but when it dries up it will be
nothing but burrs!"
Christmas in Juazeiro has become a comercial
deception. By the middle of January the artificial
trees, the lights and the Papai Noel will be
gone...leaving not a trace of lasting satisfaction.
**********
The celebration begins at midnight on Christmas Eve, with
fire crackers and the Midnight Mass, the "Mass of
the Rooster."
The Traditional Church, decorated with a manger
scene, is packed. It is an exciting social event. The
women and girls have new clothes for the occasion...and
those who have stayed awake to attend are entitled to
ask something special of Jesus Christ or one of the saints.
After the mass and a chance to see everybody's new
clothes, the families gather in their homes for a turkey
dinner. There will be roast turkey, rice, Salpicão
(Brazilian potato salad) and maybe even Pavê for
dessert.
Large manger scenes
adorn the praças; and, Christmas
day it is customary to donn the new clothes and "passear"
walking around the parks, up and down the streets visiting friends and relatives. Organized groups of
children, dressed as shepherds, sing and
dance... for a tip.
Speaking of children, Joy's pre-school
always celebrated a Birthday Party for Jesus. They
played games, received little presents, sang “Happy
Birthday” to Jesus and had a cake with candles, along
with "salgados e doces" (meat and cheese
pastries and candies. There was Cajuina to drink (a soft
drink made from the cashew fruit).
The Epiphany, or Day of the Magi, is
the last and most important day of the Season. Beginning
Christmas Day, young men from the poorer
neighborhoods form fencing teams. They practice with
whips and swords for the competition. After a gradual
elimination in the various sections of the city, the
champion is chosen. He will be the King for the Epiphany
Dance.
In some of the smaller towns,
penitents walk the streets during the night of
January 5th, singing and begging from door to door. They
may even beat themselves with whips which have razor
blades attached, in order to gain forgiveness of sins.
January 6, the day when it is believed
that the Magi arrived to worship the baby Jesus, is
celebrated with a parade, the "reisada". Three
young men, one black and two white, are dressed as the
Kings. A priest carries a statue of the Virgin Mary,
and little girls follow, dressed as angels...Then folk
customs enter making the parade a strange mixture of
Catholicism and folklore. Someone will be dressed as
Satan, all in black, complete with horns and a tail.
Others will be dressed as sheep, or simply wearing their
new country style Christmas clothes.
As they parade the streets, it is
customary to stop at doors and beg for something to eat
on their "long trip" from the orient to
Bethleham; or to give as a gift to the baby Jesus, when
the parade arrives at the Mother Church, the Matriz.
**********
The above was written for Trinity
Baptist Church, Pasadena, in 1978. Things have changed
since then.
**********
Commercialized Christmas has come to Juazeiro do Norte.
Decorations are up in the stores by the end of October.
The Brazilian version of "Jingle Bells" can be
heard all over town. The temperatures are still in the
high 90's and there is no snow! Artificial trees,
decorations and lights are on sale all over town. A
friend gave us a fruit cake last week! Parades are rare.
So are manger scenes.
Juazeiro now has a shopping center
which has been
decorated since the end of October. There is a North
Pole with a Santa Claus (Papai Noel), but last year
something new was added. Someone decided that we
are forgetting our "roots." So there are 9
foot dolls, dressed as if for the "reisada"
parade, at intervals throughout.
At Esperança Baptist Church there
will be a Christmas program and turkey dinner...served
at midnight. At Uniao Baptist Church we will have a
special Christmas
program.
**********
SALPICÃO: Brazilian Potato Salad
1 lb.
carrots
1 lb. Mexican choyote
1 lb.
potatoes
5 hard boiled eggs
1
chicken
4 apples
1 cup cream (sour if wish)
3 T mayonnaise
Cook chicken in water with salt, pepper, garlic.
Remove skin and bones and dice meat. Cook carrots,
choyote and potatoes, separately. Dice before cooking.
Chop eggs and mix all together with cream and
mayonnaise. I add a little olive juice for the tang. Add
diced apples...I leave peel for color. Salt to taste.
Chill before serving.
PAVÊ SONHO DE VALSA
First layer:
1 Tbs.
sugar
1 Tbs. cornstarch
1 can sweetened condensed milk.
equal amount regular milk
3 egg yolks
Mix sugar, cornstarch and milk together. Bring to
boil, mixing constantly. Add hot mixture, a little at a
time and always stirring, to the egg yolks. Return to
heat and mix until boils, as for cream pie filling. Pour
into buttered Pyrex. Cool.
Second layer:
Cut into chunks, 12 chocolates (like Sees) or 3 candy
bars, and 1/3 cup soft prunes. Spread over cream layer.
Third layer:
4 Tbs.
sugar
1 cup milk
2 Tbs. powdered chocolate 1 Tbs.
cornstarch
Cook over slow heat, stirring until thick. When
cooled, pour over above layers.
Fourth layer:
6 Tbs. sugar
3 egg whites
1 small container Cool Whip
Beat egg whites, adding sugar. fold into Cool Whip.
Cover third layer. Freeze. Serve frozen...only slightly
thawed.
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