THE GAY PRIDE PARADE

THE GAY PRIDE PARADE




Cristiano was a small child when his father left his mother with three kids and came to S. Paulo to look for a job. That man never went back to where they lived, a small village in the interior of Bahia, and, after some time, his mother did the same. She came to Rio instead of S. Paulo, not because she liked it better, she didn´t know either city – it was only because she had a sister already living here, in a suburb. He didn´t remember much of that time, probably because it didn´t last long. His mother died after a short disease and his aunt just couldn´t keep them anymore. His older brother was taken to a friend´s house, a man who had a car repair business and was supposed to teach him the job. His sister was twelve then and was taken by a family to help take care of their children; Cristiano was accepted in the same house after they saw him, so unprotected for a six-year-old.


His sister grew up and became a beautiful girl, of lovely white skin and curly hair. Both of them attended a public school and had a basic education that would allow them to have a modest job in the future. The future always happened as a funny thing for Cristiano – one day, all of a sudden, his sister decided she was going to live with her boyfriend and was going to take him along.

When they moved to Copacabana they started a new kind of life. His sister had her own daughters, both of them having the same white skin and beautiful curly hair. Her boyfriend didn´t show up very often, especially after their frequent fights. Cristiano now helped taking care of the girls, picking them up at school and doing the shopping. His sister was busy with courses she was taking to enable her for a better job and, most of all, the daily plight to make ends meet. Life was not easy, but Cristiano knew somehow that there would still be a future for him. He went to the beach sometimes and had a friend he had met at school. He, too, was growing up. Now and again he took a glance at himself in the mirror, while combing the little girls, and was surprised to see his own white complexion and the gray color of his eyes. Once or twice somebody had made a comment about how cute he was. He felt sorry for his sister, now; she didn´t mind her appearance anymore and looked older for her age.


That Sunday she had given him a day off, because she traveled with the girls. He had all the time in the world to get ready to go out to see the parade. He wore a cap that gave him an attractive look, something he couldn´t define, as if he could have changed just by wearing a cap. His eyes were grayer than ever after the slight make-up he used. A friend came to help him decide on his clothes for the occasion and then they rushed to see the parade. Copacabana was feverish, the broadwalk full of people who came to watch and gays who were coming to join the big event. Most of the gays wore extravagant costumes and had very heavy make-up. The parade was colorful and moved slowly but gracefully.

Cristiano couldn´t help noticing many people, men and women, staring at him. He was simply dressed but he was certainly beautiful. He, too, joined the parade with his friend. For the first time he knew he had grown up. He was going to say goodbye to his sister and start living on his own; it was about time. He felt cheerful towards the future. His future. The sky was blue, Copacabana was gorgeous, life was worth living. He was happy. He was gay.


( Cristiano was my neighbor some time ago. I never talked to him, we just usually met in the elevator, he and his two nieces. I never saw him again after the parade, I never asked his sister about him, but I couldn´t forget him … I thought of him a lot these last few days because gay parades are happening in several cities here. In Sao Paulo the parade attracted two million people. Times are changing. I hope he can be happy, very happy.)


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