Every day and every night, for nearly fifteen years, there was an old man who stood for hours along the streets of Lisbon waving goodbye to people driving by... To many he was just a crazy stranger, who, rain or shine, reported faithfully to the streets, as if this was his job, his mission in life. Waving and blowing kisses to drivers passing by was his biggest pleasure in life. Why, many people asked? The answer was easy... He was lonely.
Ever since his mom - with whom he lived - had died, he had felt alone. He hated the sound of the key opening the door to his quiet home... His "trunk of lost dreams" was filled with what never was... the degree he never got, the job he never had, the children he never created, and mostly the love story he never wrote... You see, João was born into a wealthy family. He cried so much on his first day of elementary school that his parents did not have the heart to send him back, so they chose to have him home schooled, with the help of a tutor. He admits he was raised in a glass bubble... His parents' divorce, at age 13, devastated him, and, despite his father's pressure (with whom he had moved in) to become a lawyer, he never found the motivation to finish his degree. His father, not knowing what to do with him, sent him to England for a few years, but João missed his family too much and eventually came back. After his father passed, he moved in with his mother, with whom he remained until her last days. A series of failed businesses and a gradual distancing from his siblings (mostly due to family inheritance issues) made him extremely close to his mom. She was his world, and her passing devastated him... One day, on a lonely walk, someone waved at him... He waved back... He came back the next day, and the next, and the next...
One time, during an interview, João waved and blew a kiss at a young woman who honked as she drove by... The interviewer asked if he knew her... He answered "I do now...!" The journalist then asked if he was aware that his nickname was "the man who says goodbye"... The word for goodbye in Portuguese is ADEUS, which literally means to God (a-deus). "The man who sees God?", he replied... The journalist chose not to correct him...
The man who says goodbye is no longer lonely... An email from my sister told me of his passing, at the age of 80 years old. Lisbon already misses him and his sweet embrace... He represented the true dichotomy of urban life - all alone yet surrounded by a multitude of people... With a small gesture used to muffle his own loneliness, he brought joy and happiness to so many... Maybe it wasn't a "goodbye", maybe it was a "hello", a "see you later"... Chances are, even though he is no longer there, passers-by are still smiling, waving, honking... So, next time someone smiles and waves at you, smile back... Who knows, it may just make a world of difference...
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