"If you are lucky
enough to have lived in Paris as a young man, then wherever you go for the rest
of your life it stays with you, for Paris is a moveable feast" – Ernest Hemingway
Alice Ribeiro repeated Hemingway´s phrase
softly. At this time, the flight attendant from Air France
- Madam, could you buckle your seat-belt,
please? We'll be taking off in a few minutes.
A
passion for books since her childhood, the years that she studied Literature at
the University, her job in a small bookstore, her grief that was due to her father's
death, a boyfriend who left her heartbroken...and the desire to get over her
shyness and write her own books.
The trip to Paris Alice
She promised herself that, the first thing
that she would do, when she arrives in Paris ,
would be to visit Montmartre . It is essential
for someone who goes to Paris
In fact, if Paris
were a body, Montmartre would be the heart
that dances passionately, pumping the joy of being alive. Even to forget her past
too sad, because one day, Montmartre had
lost people by religious intolerance, that's why this place was the meeting
point of the painting magic to compensate for the pain ... so the tragedy is
the target on which the paintbrushes can direct their determination. Art is a
way of evaporating our deepest chaos.
After thinking about her past, Alice
In each
room she entered, she found someone who gave her a lesson, she learned Impressionism
with Cézanne, then she saw a large
window, where Pissarro told to her about
the daily life of Montmartre, in
another room she could dance with The Prima Balerina , when Picasso took her hand, and suddenly they were in Le Bateau-Lavoir,
where he began a discussion about cubism.
Alice did not feel a mere spectator of
these scenes, by contrast, she felt her
fingers risking a few strokes on a blank canvas, felt her eyes brimming with
emotion while witnessing these streets from the window, and heard her own words
when she was trying to break up a fight between a furious Modigliani and a
moody Picasso ... She was utterly absorbed by that moment, so
that she did not realize that the plane had arrived, and that she was already
in Paris.
Hours of intense and deep dream, but reality
now called Alice
She wanted to be immersed enough to awaken
her ability to write and increase her
desire. Provoke in herself a real transfusion of passion, receiving her own
blood renewed, oxygenated and full of imagination.
But first, she wanted to visit the
bookstore Tardieu,-which is only four minutes walk from the Atelier. For years,
the bookstore, - where she worked,- bought many books from Tardieu, it was in these books that she read about the history
of France
She has been talking to herself for a
little time, though the dream had been strong, she decided to concentrate on
the present moment. So, when Alice
- Have you ever read these books before in
another language, young lady?
She looked at the man, who stood before her
with curiosity. He was much taller than her and he looked about forty , because of some white hair and his wrinkled
skin. He had keen eyes, a lean body and crutches. She tried to guess his origin,
but it seemed an impossible exercise to be undertaken with a just one question,
then Alice
-
I've
read in Portuguese and English-
-
What is there in common between the characters of
Fausto and Rodion Raskolnikov? - He asked
with the same indecipherable accent.
-
In
my opion, there's a similarity in redemption, they were men who were redeemed
by love. Although there are differences between them, they experienced a kind
of existential conflict.
-
Great!
Wonderful! My name's István Kazinczy and I´m from Budapeste , Hungary
-
-Hungary
-
The
only things I know about Hungary
-
The
kürtőskalács, a chimney cake that is sold near my house and the book that was
written by Chico Buarque, named Budapest
-
And
finally, she said, with a large smile :
-
I'm
kidding, My name´s Alice Ribeiro and I´m from Brazil
-
I know this book, the story of a female dog
who had fears and anxieties, depressed and disillusioned with life, she did not
accept the disappearance of her owner, she did not want anyone that just loved her, but she wanted also someone who she could love-
István said.
-
I
identified with her several times ...- Alice
-
Would
you like to drink
a cup of coffee with
me, Alice ? I think I have to tell you a story he asked ;
-
Sure,
there is a bistrô, near here- she answered
We went to a small bistro near the
bookstore, he was walking with
difficulty because of his crutches. A song,- that it seems came from the
depths, was playing. Josephine Baker was singing in French, an old concert she
did in the late '20s on an old gramophone. We sat at a table near the street,
when he began to tell his story:
-
I
came to Paris s, I stayed for almost a year in a
wheelchair. I felt all the effects, losses and damages that the accident caused
in me, but something inside me screamed and begged: -Dont give up your life! I refused any
possibility of defeat. Relearned how to walk and now I want to see the
fireworks in the sky making noises, I want to be the protagonist of my life,
not just a spectator. I want to realize all my dreams. I think if we meet here,
it is because somehow I know you came to Paris
-
I also want to celebrate my life. At least,
discover that I can create something beyond me. Paris Paris
- Alice, Alice, Alice Eiffel Tower
