One afternoon, Eraldo, his sister Luana, and their friends Valdenes, Ana Karina, and Branquinha went to visit Antônio Neto, the former FEB soldier and Valdenes' grandfather, who was 100 years old and living with his granddaughter Suziana in the same house where he spent his childhood, located in the center of Lagoa da Italianinha, in the heart of the Pernambuco countryside. He received the five of them and said to his grandson:
- I met Valdenes recently, I like him like this, barefoot, just like I always was...
- Thank you, Grandpa.
Eraldo said:
- We're from the 'Café com Cultura' group here in Lagoa da Italianinha, and Valdenes told me that you were a hero fighting in Italy.
- Yes, yes. I was drafted when I was only 19 years old. I still remember my mother, Mônica, crying when I was about to go to Italy. Look, I spent a few months there, but it felt like an eternity.
Luana said:
- But how did you spend those months there?
- Very tense. We didn't have set times for eating or sleeping... and I lost many comrades on that battlefield. The only good thing was meeting the beautiful Italian Roberta, your grandmother, Valdenes.
- It's a shame I didn't even get to meet her... I lived on the streets, I didn't even know my origins - said Valdenes.
Ana Karina said:
- Mr. Antônio, did you know that we have a common ancestor? Your grandfather, whose name was Antônio, who married Alvanir, was a descendant of Gilmara, the slave from the 18th century.
- Really????
- Yes, my ancestor Adriállina was a cousin of Antônio, your grandfather.
Branquinha said:
- That means Valdenes has Italian, Indigenous, and African blood as well. Very interesting.
- I didn't even know, I'm finding out now because Ana Karina told me - said Valdenes.
Antônio Neto said:
- Our family is bigger than you think. My aunt Aline, for example, had Italian ancestry, since she married and went to live in Italy. Jadiael, Alycia's father, was her grandson. And my other aunt, Aurineide, had Moab's family, for example."
Valdenes said:
- Does that mean I'm a distant cousin of Josiane, the congressman's daughter?
- Yes... but distant. Branquinha, that beautiful young lady here, is also your distant cousin."
Eraldo said:
- That means the five of us here have the same origin. Luana and I are grandchildren of the Italian Moysés and Naná, Moab's great-aunt, who is Branquinha's uncle, so we come from the lineage of Aline and Aurineide at the same time." Valdenes is his direct grandson, descended from Alvanir's lineage, and Ana Karina is a descendant of the same family as Antônio, who married Alvanir.
- Well...
They talked there for many hours, and as they were leaving, Antônio Neto said:
- Not at all, don't leave without having lunch. My granddaughter Suziana prepared a delicious lunch.
They had lunch and afterwards said goodbye and returned to the city center.
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