Pa' dónde se fue?

[asakiyume]

On December 14 wakanomori shared a Guardian article with me about Joaquim Melo, the 64-year-old owner of a remarkable bookstore in Manaus, the largest city in the Amazon. The bookstore, Banca do Largo,

serves as a refuge for Amazonian writers and activists alike, pushing to protect the region from exploitation.​ By promoting local literature, particularly works by Indigenous writers, Melo believes he can help spread new ideas about societal organisation and the environment that are different from the capitalistic frameworks prevalent in the west.

Photo of the bookshop, from its website:



I was delighted--I went looking for more and found this video (in Portuguese) about the place. You might click on it just to hear the ambient noise--birds, animals, people, and traffic. And you'll also get to hear Mr. Melo talking <3

I started following the bookstore's Instagram, which updated rather overwhelmingly frequently, always with pictures of Mr. Melo with his customers--locals and tourists alike.









Then--nothing! I attributed that to algorithm bullshit. But then I went looking and discovered that the account had posted a death notice--Mr. Melo passed away on New Year's Day.

On the death notice was a quote from Chico Buarque (whom Wikipedia tells me is a Brazilian singer-songwriter):

Não há dor que dura para sempre!
Tudo é vário. Temporário. Efêmero.
Nunca somos, sempre estamos.

(There's no pain that lasts forever!
Everything is various. Temporary. Ephemeral.
We never are, we always are ...

I love what Spanish and Portuguese make possible linguistically by having a permanent-state verb "to be" and a temporary-state verb "to be." Because it's so true: we're never an immutable thing, we're always changing. We are dot dot dot

Sometimes you learn of a person just 18 days before they leave the world. Judging from the comments on the post of his death notice, he was well beloved. I hope his bookshop is able to continue.

Comments

[osprey_archer]

Ooooooooh.... how bittersweet to find out about such a cool person just before he died.

[asakiyume]

Right? It's like in manga or movies when you catch a glimpse of someone in, or from, the window of a moving train, and then they're gone.

[wayfaringwordhack]

Nice way of putting it. <3

[asakiyume]

<3

[the_future_modernes]

Oh darn I am so sorry that he died! But that bookstore is so beautiful and I hope someone else will run it.

[asakiyume]

I do too--I hope he has family or friends who keep it going.

[minoanmiss]

Mr. Melo sounds absolutely wonderful. I also hope his bookshop can continue.

[asakiyume]

I love the way he smiles in all the photos; I love the sound of his voice and what he says!

[sovay]

Sometimes you learn of a person just 18 days before they leave the world.

I have had this experience. Or right after they die, sometimes, which feels like an even weirder form of near-miss, because their art is right there, how can they not be?

His memory for a blessing and, I hope, also his bookshop.

[asakiyume]

which feels like an even weirder form of near-miss, --Yes: I feel like I've had this experience too (though I can't recall a case in particular), and it leaves you with a feeling of longing and regret.

His memory for a blessing and, I hope, also his bookshop. --Amen.

[sartorias]

Oh, that is such a shame. I hope his bookstore can survive!

[asakiyume]

I hope so too 🙏🏼

[mallorys_camera]

Bittersweet. ❤️

[asakiyume]

Truly :(

[amaebi]

Go well, Mr. Melo. May the texts you love and read only be enlarged.

[asakiyume]

A good blessing 💛

[queenoftheskies]

How very sad. :(

[asakiyume]

It is :(

[rimturse]

What a lovely place, and I'm sad to hear about Mr. Melo. It sounds as if he will be missed by many.

[asakiyume]

I think he really will be--I hope the community finds a way to let the bookshop continue.