...............Frances
Burns
The Night I Danced in the Carnival
Yes, I
remember the night I danced in the Carnival. It was one of
my experiences while serving through the Central Methodist Church
in Salvador in the state of Bahia, Brazil. There the city goes
all-out to celebrate popular festivals all summer long, which, in
that part of the world, lasts from the end of December through
March or longer. Carnival is the major celebration. It is
a magic spectacle with all-out participation - the poor, the
rich, black, white, mulatto. That means practically everybody
except the members of the Protestant churches, who often have
retreats out away from the centers.
The Bahia region is where the
majority of the slaves from Africa were brought to do the manual
labor in the cotton and sugar cane fields. So the African
influence of their gods, customs, and food is felt strongly
there.
I went
every Sunday by bus to a poor section of the city, called
"Liberdade," where our church had a new congregation,
for Sunday School in the morning, visitation in the afternoon and
a worship service in the evening.
So, after the worship service of
that Carnival Sunday evening, I took the bus back to the
center, the end of the line. My apartment, however, was on the
other side of the main street. That made it necessary for me to
cross the main stream of the Carnival celebration. The
huge truck bearing electric instruments playing samba
music was passing by, and the street was filled to overflowing
with people, dressed in all sorts of costumes. Some were in
groups, dressed alike. Others were just joining in with the
rhythm, dancing to the music, others just "jumping"
along.
I waited a while. What to do?
Finally, because there seemed to be no other option, I plunged
in, "jumping" too. I was carried along for some
distance before reaching the other side and continued to my
nearby apartment. From there I could still hear the jubilant
sounds until early morning. That is a Carnival I will
never forget, since I, too, danced in the Carnival.
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