Finally, the great day of Joca had arrived. Now, even if he wanted, it would not be more possible to return behind, without giving vexation. It would raise an unprecedented scandal, because a disrupted engagement, that it had extended for thirteen long years, now finally it would place him in the " serious " men's list.

The family disagreements, mainly on the part of the parents of Aninha, they were the tonic _self of the conflicts. The old ones didn't adjust to the series of postponements promoted by the boy. So many that they got to lose the bill were. "Seu" Joaquim, Aninha's father, old Portuguese of Trás-dos-Montes, was one of those, that didn't take insolences home and every time that he crossed with Joca, when hearing his explanations, in an undecided manner, he was furious twisting the long mustaches, already a thin amount and he fight with Joca, trying to obtain of him a final point for so much swindles postures. The boy stuttered and he didn't get to babble any word to appease the future father-in-law's fury, when Joca got, he ended up spilling in only one breath that has just marked the marriage and that of that time the thing will really happen.

The old was astonished, he was not believing in what he heard. He stayed openmouthed, without understanding anything, as if his neurons had been momentary - mind turned off. After some seconds of silence, his mental "chips" had fallen and he opened a big smile, he hugged, the now, future son-in-law, and with an affectionate gesture the old man said: - " Hurra! It was already time. Miracles are long, but they end up happening ".

Joca, in that instant, noticed the extension of his gesture and of as it had been difficult to make that decision. Unemployed, had gotten to buy with a lot of difficulty a little truck Studebaker year 50, an old vehicle, but it was everything that had gotten acquire with the poverty he pays for his former-boss, that had the courage of calling it of " fair compensation ", so fair, that could only buy that old small truck.

And it was from way that Joca became a small entrepreneur of the section of transports, or almost that, when he parked his " relic vehicle" in the main square of Vila Guilherme's old neighborhood from São Paulo, provoking debauch laughters in his companions. Him, however, didn't feel for due and he go to the FIGHT for the live, accepting any carriage type and the one that more appeared was the famous changes of the less privileged class of the society: the poor, that they are always changing, due to the spillings. Sad destiny of the " without roof " that they live in that country , dreaming with the impossible.

Certain day, he had caught a carriage of donations of clothes, victuals and medicines, that were destined to the patients of a psychiatric hospital, that lived of the public charity. There he met Gustavo, Gugú, boy educated, very nice, that exercised storekeeper's function and they ended turning themselves friends and confidants. The friend had been abandoned by the bride, that she had changed him for an ugly man, but... Rich. Always the vile metal to corrupt the humanity, transforming the Love in a feeling innocuous and totally disposable. That history leave Joca very worried and undecided. If he should marry or not with his " Portuguese girl ". If is she been betrayed him with a more beautiful boy than him? Perhaps, with more money? The doubts and to schism him they were transforming Gugu in a taciturn and melancholic man, in order to, he almost to give up the marriage, then the successive postponements. To marry or not to marry? Here is the subject that tormented him. And to worsen the situation, his bride Aninha she was very bad-tempered, a lot similar to the future mother-in-law, Dona Deolinda, vulgar woman ", that she was the whole time charging, remembering their duties, insinuating that he should make a decision, etc, etc. That a lot irritated him, therefore if before the marriage it was like this, imagine later...

The friend Gugú was seeking for a house to live and Joca, always an usefulness man introduced him to his future father-in-law, "Seu" Joaquim, and he got that he rented one of the dozens of houses, that possessed at the Vila Guilherme, all with comfortable small rooms, aligned in tunnel, bathroom out of house, distant, that made their residents they to take rain or they be exposed to the bad weather when they ran for doing " xixi ", in the cold dawns, of the old metropolis of São Paulo.

The old Portuguese lived of the rents of those houses, besides a small emporium of dry and wet, with the predominance of the wet ones - a true bar, in the meaning of the word. It was very known by a drink, that he manufactured, a such brandy of plums, that had learned how to do in Portugal and now he did here in our " terrinha ". The only thing that nor him, nor the people, they liked the old Vila Guilherme it was the proximity of their houses with the Zoo, of property of "Seu" Antonio, old Portuguese transmontano, that had come from Portugal with "Seu"Joaquim, father of Aninha. Instead of setting up a bakery, as most of their patricians, "Seu" Antonio set up a Zoo, near of Vila Guilherme's Square. He acquired several animals, some very ferocious ones and about the money it was scarce, he didn't take care of the bugs and nor he gave safety to the people. Like this, many unpleasant facts happened, as the one of the invasion of the party of the marriage.

The thing happened in the sunny afternoon of that Saturday, when the radiant and happy engaged couple, after the religious ceremony in the church of old Parí, went back home, in order to commemorate such expected marriage. It was prepared a great party, with many foods and drinks The table exaggeratedly long, it had been improvised with boards, to receive the most varied tidbits, from roasted chickens, temperate potatoes in the vinaigrette, appetizers of whatever are type, besides of bread pieces with decorated mayonnaise with picles slices and the one that more got the attention was the enormous bunches of ripe bananas on the table, that they would be to feed the most starving guests in the worst of the hypotheses. They didn't lack not even the famous cashews.

There was in the corner of the room an enormous pan, full until the mouth, of roasted ham pieces and dived in a thick sauce of tomato, delicacy that was disputed to pushes, punches and kicks, by the famished guests. At beginning, they placed the pieces on the breads, later they didn't waste more time with the etiquette and they dipped the hand and the bread... Direct in the large pan. Gugú, the godfather of the marriage, observed everything to at a discreet distance.

In given moment, somebody remembered to open the window of the living room to enter air and it shines and the one that happened was terrible. An enormous head appeared framed by a vast mane. It was a LION, that with a terrible roar, it threw his protest for it not being invited. There was great tumult with runnings and faintings in the face of such unusual visitor.

The most courageous jumped the window of the front room and they ran for the street looking for the help. Nor it was necessary, because the police and the firemen were already to positions. A not less afraid sergeant investigated: - " Where is the bug?

Somebody answered: - "It is there, in front of the window of the living room ".

The policemen traveled in turn of the house, but they didn't find the bug, until that it was heard screams in the neighborhood, and for there they ran and they captured the enormous feline.

Aninha, the very nervous bride, didn't adjust to the events of that day. First out the dressmaker, Dona Jordelina, that had only gotten to prepare the dress half hour before the marriage and Aninha had been forced getting dressed at the sacristy of the church. A nonsense! Now, in the party it appears a LION! What more it could happen, my God?

Something told her that the future of her marriage would be a failure. The things didn't go well. She tried to move away those negative thoughts of her mind and she went to meet. "Seu" Augusto and Dona Florinda, (Portuguese of the Wood Island), father and mother of Joca, that seemed happy with the son's marriage to the exact moment that " Seu " Joaquim (father of Aninha) he decided to open some bottles of his famous brandy of plums - it ruins ethyl, responsible for most of the family tumults. All began to drink the unlucky brandy and in a little while the vitalities were exalted. Some in a positive way, as dressmaker's Dona Jordelina case, very Catholic, shy and quiet lady, that after some gulps, she decided to dance a hallucinating accompanied Rock of a " striptease ". The people helped quickly, dragging her in direction of the bathroom, in the bottom of the back yard, to recompose and there they left her. Suddenly, she heard scream, a desperate screams of help. She was Dona Jordelina, that find an enormous gorilla when entering in the strait bathroom, seated in the basin, delighting in uncoiling the toilet paper roll and sells the old dressmaker, afraid, it caught her for the waist and the terrible but forced her to sit down in his lap. The old lost the speech, size is her panic.

- " But it is Dudú, that monkey fugitive! - Told one of the firemen laughing. Come, we go home, his "monkey shameless"

But no matter how much he tried, the diligent fireman didn't get to dissuade the enormous bug of his projects, that just balanced negatively the head and it continued holding her frightened lady. The fireman went need to anesthetize him to take it of turn to the Zoo. Lady Jordelina, later of that fright, she never again proved lcoholic drunk.

After solving the problem of the gorilla Dudú, the firemen ran to assist another shouting that vineyard of the street. They were countless monkeys suspended, as transverse youngsters, in the back of two bus, that crossed each other, on that moment.

They tried the party to come back for the second time. This seemed a war stage, nothing had not remained. The improvised table had fallen down in the ground and the dispute for the food it continued, in a lower level, in the ground. The unhappy bride sobbed in a corner and dismantled Joca, he tried to console her.

In the window where before it had been the lion, now the people was seeing a ... GIRAFFE, that threading the head, it stretched out her long neck, to chew the dear curtains of surrender Portuguese of the Dona Deolinda (inheritance of the saint " terrinha " - Portugal), that when running across with that misfortune, she rushed, hopelessly, gorging to the neck of the giraffe, that afraid, the animal were disappearing for the back yard, leaving the old Portuguese to the weeping, sawing her curtain all lacerated.

In the middle of that whole tumult it was heard the strident and intermittent touch of the horn of a truck, discharging loudly - "would the monkeys be robbing the truck? Thought Joca, in panic, that understood in a fraction of second that was

happening - " My God! My truck is being robbed " - And Joca discharged in precipitate run by the street with great accompaniment. Because it is, my friends, in that whole disorder, somebody took advantage of to rob the old truck, the only " way of life " of the the newlywed Joca. He had equipped the vehicle with an excellent alarm device, totally inedited and created by him own. It worked in the following way: when somebody tried to place the vehicle in movement, loosening the brake, to give the departure through a jostle, that didn't happen, therefore besides not diffusing, the system joined the direction of the vehicle, that discharged slope below, in an infernal uproar, because it was worked the horn and the vehicle, with joined direction, it went direct in the direction of the first punch that found for the front. Besides the uproar was increased with the strident noise of dozens of cans shaking in the paving stones, tied in the back bumper, where it was read " the newlywed " and for happiness of the several dogs, announcing to the whole neighborhood, the attempt of robbery of the old truck. The thieves, albeit they tried to usually give the departure, through a direct connection in the ignition, but they didn't find her. The truck only work moving a lever of iron, that was placed in a hole in front of the vehicle. Thing of last times. that only was happened in the decade of 50. The unfortunate persons scoundrels, soon after they beat with the vehicle in the punch, they ran into the policemen and firemen, that were still seeking the fugitive bugs of the Zoo and they ended up taking one more couple of thieves for the jail...

Then of those hilarious events, Joca was happy in recovering his truck and he ended up laughing at the issue of the history. His marriage, in spite of the griefs, of the relatives' fights, it ended up giving right, until today. The engaged couple had a thing in common - two temperamental Portuguese families, protagonists of many fights and confusions. Perhaps, that is the ideal seasoning of a matrimonial life, dived a lot of times in a boring replete routine of wastes.

Gugú no longer it lives more at the Vila Guilherme. He married an actress and he also turned actor and writer. The old Portuguese already died there are years, but they are still reminded with a lot of affection. Joca, today, is owner of a carrier in Guarulhos and he retired his old and dear Studebaker - 50 and he lives very happy with Aninha and their eleven children (a complete football (soccer team), remembering a past of a lot of memories and longings.

And so, I as a good longing man, also miss... longings of those good times that don't come back more ... memories from everything... until... of the marriage of Joca.

(Story published in the Antologia " Letras in Poster " - 2005 of Publisher Cartaz Cartolina Araruama - Rio de Janeiro - Pages 30 to 35).

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" THE MARRIAGE OF JOCA "