That moment that we’re all waiting for…

The fact that I haven’t updated in over three weeks does not mean that things have been slow here. In fact, it’s quite the contrary. Things have indeed been picking up, all thanks to one extraordinary recent development.

Brazil is finally becoming home.

So maybe you’re thinking, “is he talking about Buffalo, NY?” Well…partly–in that all of the cities that I may or may not have visited here in Brazil, Rio de Janeiro is the only place where I keep all of my belongings. However, if you can recall from some of my previous posts, over the past three years I have come to consider Washington DC and, more specifically, Georgetown, as home because it is where the center of my interests lie, where some of my closest friends reside, and where I can see myself potentially living later on down the line.

But recently an interesting question has arisen, one that crosses my mind at least once if not various times a day. Is it possible to have two such places? Two such homes? Or does one have to be pushed aside to make room for the other?

I don’t know, but it’s frighteningly delightful to consider the possibilities. After four months here in Brazil, I am finally being mistaken for a Brazilian even after I open my mouth (but almost never for a carioca, but I’m almost there), understanding the lyrics of songs on the radio (even some rap, which is the biggest test of all!), nodding my head during conversations because I`m actually understanding it all and not just pretending like I know what`s going on, belting out “essa é a minha música favorita (this my song!!)” in nightclubs and singing along, having conversations about the most recent events of A Favorita (the popular telenovela das oito), using slang, swearing in ways that cariocas would be proud of, posing in pictures wearing a sunga (Brazilian male swimwear, a more flattering cousin of the Speedo), doing a decent samba and an even better forró, being deemed a funkeiro da gema (a funk dancer since conception), and most importantly, I have finally made some friends that I care deeply for. Even though I have months before I have to say any sort of (final?) goodbyes, the thought of that fateful day in July leaves me feeling all…emotional. Moreover, it’s only going to get worse because things will only go up at this point so leaving will be all the more difficult.

So in a nutshell, I am pretty sure that I am having the time of my life, but at the same time I can’t help but to think of what comes next. Does it all go downhill once I leave Brazil, go back to Georgetown, and graduate? Do I only feel this love for Brazil because I’ve never been to anywhere else, because I’ve never known, nor probably will ever get to know another country quite in the way that I’m getting to know Brazil? Or is Brazil a special, enchanted place that’s different from all the rest? Would I ever be able to trade in the red, white, and blue in favor of the blue, yellow, and green in good conscience? Only time will tell…

But thankfully, time is on my side.