Flores Raras Page #4

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Joana!

Lota... Are you hurt

Are you OK

I'm fine.

Everything is fine.

Where are you

I'm at the Palace with Carlos.

The palace

Yes, we are celebrating.

As Tom Jobim says,

"Brazil is not

for beginners..."

How can one live in a place

where stamps come unglued,

soap melts almost

before you can use it,

rivers run too fast to the sea

I would like to understand this

unbearable joy Brazilians have,

this constant urge to celebrate.

And then there's

your melancholy,

it's drama,

it's flamboyance,

it's abandon.

To a North American,

particularly one like me,

it's...

out of proportion, excessive.

Kennedy's assassination...

Such mourning,

such outpourings of grief.

The doormen,

cab drivers, cleaning ladies...

Why What is it you lost

But when

the military coup happened

and you lost your freedom,

I was there, I saw it;

You went on playing

soccer on the beach.

The longer you

stay in one place,

the less you understand it.

Well, anyway...

thanks for coming.

Have fun.

I know you will.

Bon appetit.

These are the people

I work with.

It isn't funny to me.

I'm sorry, I just got lost.

You got drunk.

I'm not drunk.

You want me

to be indulgent with you.

I won't be.

To me, indulgence is

a lack of esteem,

a sign of disdain.

You better go back

to Samambaia for a while

and sober up.

Cal...

You see the bird

I got an offer

from New York University

to teach a semester

there in the fall.

Really

It'd only be for

a couple of months,

and I think it might

be kind of fun.

Impossible...

I need you here.

Stay one more day.

Cookie, you know I can't.

What about our garden

It's in desperate need of you.

See you back here Friday

for your birthday.

Happy Birthday, Aunt Elizabeth.

Thank you, Clara.

You're welcome.

Happy Birthday, Elizabeth.

Thank you, Mary.

This arrived from

your friend Lowell.

Oh, thank you.

Here you go.

Lota had to stay in town

for a meeting with Lacerda.

She'll be up

as soon as she can.

Can you say good night

Good night, Aunt Elizabeth.

Good night, darling.

Cookie.

Cookie!

Cookie.

Cookie!

Cookie.

I don't drink because

things go wrong, Lota.

I want to drink

every minute of every day.

Things going wrong

just gives me the excuse

I've been looking for.

But why

Because if I don't

have what I want...

I'm lonely and sad.

And if I do have what I want...

I'm sure I'm going to lose it.

And the waiting is unbearable.

I think I'm gonna buy

you a hat like that.

Having you all to myself

here in Ouro Preto

was the best birthday present.

Wait.

That's how I want

the light in the park to be.

That would be magical.

It will be magical.

Wait and see.

By the way, when we go back,

I want you to write

a book about the park.

Lota...

I've been thinking about

the offer from NYU,

teaching for a semester.

I told you I needed you.

It would only be for a semester

and you could visit...

Wait...

Did you already accept the job

Answer me. Did you

Yes.

So you came on this trip

knowing you were leaving me!

I'm not leaving you;

t's just for a semester.

How dare you -

after all I've given you!

You...

You want sympathy,

but you give none back.

You want to be loved,

but remain completely elusive!

I'm not elusive.

So it's not a strategy,

you're simply indifferent!

That's not true.

Do you realize that you

never said, "I love you"

You can't expect someone

who was raised in a desert

to swim like a fish.

Oh, what a pretty

turn of phrase!

I don't find it...

Actually, I did say it once.

Oh, you did When was it

You were asleep.

It was after the Pulitzer...

I was asleep!

Thank you so much!

This is hilarious!

This is poetic justice!

I've even got the f***ing poet -

or... rather I don't!

Lota...

Please don't make a scene.

It is just a semester.

Do you really believe

that you can handle

one whole semester

without me to keep you in line

You'll be so drunk you won't

know where you're teaching!

Live without me

You're not strong enough.

You can't survive without me!

Don't do this.

OK, let me guide you

through the first week.

Write a poem, a sonnet,

about...

how to f*** up a relationship.

But only one page,

because it doesn't...

take very long.

That's it...

Run, as you always do,

you drunk!

No.

She packed two bags,

kissed Joana goodbye,

and left for the airport.

I didn't just attack her,

I humiliated her.

That was my mistake.

Your mistake would be

to chase after her.

I think you should have a

little pride, a little strength.

I don't know,

maybe you're right.

That's why she

fell in love with me, right

At the end of an affair,

there really are only two cures.

Here we go.

One is to simply

endure the pain until it ends,

time heals all wounds,

etcetera, etcetera.

The other...

is to dissolve old memories

in lavish doses of alcohol

while vigorously fornicating

with anything that moves.

Truth is,

I'm happy to be here Cal,

and so happy to see you.

But I miss her.

Things get in your blood.

Miss Elizabeth Bishop...

The faculty.

It's a pleasure to meet you.

Pleasure to meet you too.

Welcome to New York.

Thank you very much.

I don't really know

what I'm doing here,

because I don't really believe

you can teach anyone

to write poetry.

What I can do

is to train the poet's eye.

Nice place.

Still need to do a lot of work.

Here.

Exile is only a luxury for those

who steal before they leave...

Something I forgot to do.

Do you need somewhere to stay

No...

No, good God, no.

I'm fine. Thank you.

I can never

run for office again,

but here I am... alive.

In these days,

that counts as lucky.

I just heard

from friends in Rio.

Lota's in the hospital.

What kind of hospital

She wanted to turn

the park into a foundation,

to keep it safe

from the government and...

I know that.

What kind of hospital

She failed.

The military threw her aside.

What kind of hospital, Carlos

A mental hospital -

for depression and breakdown.

My darling Cookie,

I know I was rude,

but surely enough time has

passed for you to forgive me.

I finally took

your advice about my father,

and I'm so grateful

to you for this.

Please answer one of my letters

Just one.

Why are you here!

Why didn't you tell me

what was happening

Where is she

She can't see you, Elizabeth.

- She can't see you!

- Take your hands off me!

Yes, I am.

I'm Elizabeth Bishop.

How is she

She's still very depressed.

I want to see her.

She's just starting to recover

and now you want to do

this to her all over again!

She needs to be calm,

no stress.

Your name makes

her very agitated.

Why don't you go home,

get some rest.

We both love Lota,

so tell me honestly -

is this because of me

This one time, Elizabeth,

it's not about you.

Think about it...

How could anybody

possibly be that confident

But she thinks

you're the cause...

and also the cure.

She is obsessed

with you coming back.

She imagines you

nursing her through this...

like she nursed you

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