A knock at the back gate introduced Gisele into our lives. Gisele was our co-landlord and the wife of the half blind Saint Adelmo who we had met just over a week ago. She was informed of the never-ending problems of the pool and the gate, which still was constantly jamming, and told us she would get right on it. Aunt Lori gave Caroline and me a brief tutorial on teaching English as a second language, since that is exactly what would be occurring that evening at the hall. We were instructed to begin with the alphabet and how to say each letter in English. On separate flash cards they were to write the letter on each side, and then how to pronounce the letter in English using the sounds of the Portuguese alphabet.
Mark and William returned home for a lunch of chicken pie and rice and then we headed for an afternoon in the Planalto. Mark had spent most of the morning along with Luciano chipping the crumbling concrete off the side of the hall. They had finished the lower portion of one wall, but scaffolding was needed to reach the higher levels. William had leveled a lot of the driveway area with crushed stone, and was looking forward to playing with Herbson in the afternoon. I grabbed a chisel and hammer and began on the front wall of the hall. I was joined by Uncle Mark when he finished his designated area on the other wall. Luciano had left to go pick up the scaffolding, and he returned as soon as the rays of the blaring sun lost their intensity. The Sheik of Concrete is one smart man.
Lillia, Aunt Lori and Caroline headed south of Natal to meet with a man to discuss him supplying the raw wood materials for the co-op. Traffic halted their progress however since they needed to be back to the Planalto by 5:00 for the start of English lessons. After waiting an hour in an unmoving procession of small cars (in Brazil the Honda Accord or Toyota Corolla are kings) they turned the Gol around and headed back to the hall. We were making progress at chipping at the red concrete that came off as if it were rotten wood. The fine dust concentrated the air causing everyone close to the red cloud to make a conscious decision whether or not to breathe. The dirt stung my eyes and, caused my white socks and brown sandals to turn a shade of reddish/tan.
Why was I wearing sandals? I had worn sneakers to the concrete chipping party the previous Friday, and I had washed them when I got home that night. Seeing as we don't have a dryer at the house, I left them out on the patio to dry during the next day. A torrential rain storm had delayed the drying process, but sunny weather with only a 10% chance of precipitation was predicted for the next day. The Nike's remained outside only to be soaked by a Sunday filled with rain. Sandals were my only option. I refused to get the red powder in my mouth, so I kept it closed. During the four hours I was chiseling I had unknowingly clenched my teeth. When it got dark, I opened my mouth for the first time and my teeth ached.
English lessons had started, and I was covered in red dirt from head to toe. I gave myself a semi-sponge bath in the small and cramped single stall bathroom at the hall and then sat in on Caroline’s lesson. She was teaching a few of the younger people, while Aunt Lori had a larger adult class in the next room. From where I was sitting I could hear both lessons running concurrently and from what I heard, they both appeared to be doing the same thing. I helped in places I saw fit, mostly with forcing the students to put emphasis on certain sounds in the words they were saying. Every time they would see how an English word was spelt, they would pronounce it using the sounds of the Portuguese alphabet. This is expected, and brings to light the importance of making them repeat the correct pronunciation until they get it drilled into their heads.
After the hour lesson, I said goodbye to the friends I had made here in case I didn't see them the next day, and we headed for home. We stopped at a shopping center so I could finally unload the traveler’s checks that had been a burden on me since my arrival. Aunt Lori purchased some shoes for William, and we got home at around 8:00 in the evening. I went to work trying to recover the photos of the buggy ride that I had accidentally deleted, making little progress. After a talk with my parents, I headed for bed. At this point I had been without sleep for 42 hours and I had a much anticipated date with my mattress and pillow...
Luciano's Workers Cementing the Wall that We Chipped on Friday 
Uncle Mark and I at Work chipping the Front of the Hall
The Area's Around the Windows and Doors Were Especially Difficult
Aunt Lori Teaching Her Class the Alphabet
Caroline Helping Two Students Conduct a Practice Exercise
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