I usually write about family stories in my other journal at Diaryland, but I figured I could write it here today. The following is a true story about my mother and her "scandalous" encounter at her window with her boyfriend, "Lourenco" at the age of 16.
Setting: 1950, in Vila Nova, a small Portuguese village in the Azores. It is the early afternoon, and my mother is seen above at her window. In those days, good Portuguese girls stayed in their homes, at their windows to speak to their male admirers on Sunday and Thursday afternoons. Any closer contact would be inappropriate and quickly frowned upon. Just think of "Romeo & Juliet" for a moment.
This is a story of how one innocent, and misinterpretated action caused the complete destruction of an otherwise perfect puppy love romance.
Lourenco was a nice young man, who was intelligent, handsome, and considered a "catch" for any young lady on the island. My mother at the time, thought very highly of him, and Lourenco thought that Ana (my mom) was the most beautiful girl in the village. He would often go to her window and talk to her about many things. They spoke of school, festival activities, including their futures together. Lourenco told Ana of his desire to buy his grandfather's house that stood on the hill after they got married. News of his frequent visits to Ana's window spread quickly throughout the village, and sometimes, some of the villagers had nothing better to do on a Sunday afternoon than to watch their romance bloom. (This was before TV and late afternoon "novelas" hit the village circuit.)
On one particular day, Ana wore a pearly necklace. Unfortuantely the clasp of the necklace broke loose, sending it fall to the ground at Lourenco's feet. Lourenco, being the gentleman that he was, took out his white hankie from his coat pocket, and picked up the necklace from the ground. He then innocently threw up the necklace up to Ana. It was a perfect throw, and they both laughed once Ana caught it. Little did they know, the laughter of this innocent exchange, brought unwanted attention, marking the begining of the end to their romance.
It so happens, a very noisey neighbor, who had nothing better to do that afternoon, heard laughter and saw Lourenco throw something up to Ana's windown. She was both shocked and disappointed in what she had seen. What was that young man throwing up to Ana? Underwear?! The woman, (who according to my mother she was a very mean spirited, and bitter woman, who never got married, and always found pleasure in creating gossip) rushed to Ana's Aunt's house and told her what she had seen. Aunt Augusta did not like what she was hearing, and quickly spoke to Ana's parents. Rumors quickly spread throughout Vila Nova, which made Ana's step-father very embarrassed and angry. He was so angry that he had proceeded to nail the shutters to all of the windows of the house, forbidding Ana to any future encounters with the Lourenco boy.
To make a long story short, my mother did not marry Lourenco, largely due to rumors, and misinterpretations of the simple throw of the necklace. My mother is still upset of what had happened, that day long ago, as anyone would have been, but then again, I'm not disappointed too much because she did eventually meet my father. One only wonders what would have happened if my mother had not worn her necklace that day. It is interesting how one simply moment in time can really change a lifetime.
