Maria Tecla di Silva Gaia is evidence of the continuation of the song of Sister Dorothy Stang. Tecla is a Brazilian who entered Sister Dorothy’s order, the Sisters of Notre Dame de Namur, 10 years ago. She is a joyful, earthy presence, with a laugh as light as sunshine on the forest floor.
“She was the simplest of the simple, transparent,” Tecla says of Sister Dorothy. The bubbly sister, who is in the United States for an immersion experience, speaks in broken English, jabbing at the air as she paints a picture of her mentor.
“She was very lovable and dear.” Quickly her expression turns to a childlike sternness. But then she laughs again, saying, “Irma Dorothy [Portuguese for Sister Dorothy] was very stubborn, determined.”
Inspired by Sister Dorothy
by Tina Neyer
A YOUNG BRAZILIAN woman watches a gray-haired woman in a T-shirt and long skirt from a window deep in the Amazon. The older woman is in the forest dancing—something very odd to the young woman. Suddenly, as if she could not contain herself, the older woman hugs a tree. Then, turning toward the building where the young woman stands, she hollers, “You must hug someone every day, Tecla. And if you can’t find a person to hug, hug a tree.”
Tecla, in a sweater the jeweled blue of a macaw, speaks through Sister Joan Krimm, as her English is not as good as Tecla hopes it will be someday. She grew up in Bragancia, Brazil, as one of the people Sister Dorothy served.
With a broad smile she says, “Irma Dorothy saw injustices and fought for a life of dignity for the farmers.” Tecla folds her arms in her lap as Sister Joan says that Sister Dorothy loved the people of Brazil so much that she had dual citizenship. Tecla exudes a serene joy with a voice as rhythmic as a Brazilian samba, recounting the favorite qualities of Sister Dorothy: “Her smile was her greatest asset.”
Tecla doesn’t know what opera is, but she knew Sister Dorothy and learned from her that life could be different. When she finishes the year in the United States, she will return to Brazil. There she will profess her final vows and continue her work with prostitutes
.
What is it about Tecla and Sister Dorothy that provokes such passion? They both embody an enthusiasm for the people and the land that now has a musical score and words created by a young man from Albany, N.Y. He shares their passion for the Amazon and its people.
* Excerpt from “Angel of the Amazon” by Tina Neyer, from St. AnthonyMessenger magazine, is used by permission of Franciscan Media, 28. 800-488-0488.
©2012. All rights reserved.
Tecla shown here in 2009 with a statue of SND foundress,
Julie Billiart.
