From the December 2018 TimeSquared challenge. In honor of two dear friends whose time on earth has passed. And a reminder that time in not infinite. Celebrate every second, there is no do over.
Join Becky’s October square challenge PastSquares
Its an anniversary of sorts. The day after Thanksgiving 40 years ago this week, I moved from Minnesota to Los Angeles, California. I had never been to California. I was heading to a job I had been offered two weeks previously, to which I had to report immediately, and about which I literally knew almost nothing. I had to pack everything up and put it in storage or give it away. Thankfully my mom and dad were in the area for Thanksgiving. Not that I had a lot of possessions in those days. I was working in retail and was just getting by.
I boarded an airplane with no place to live in Los Angeles, just a short term room rental in Hollywood I found in a Fodor’s travel guide. To say I was not an experienced traveler is an understatement. My plane landed in Las Vegas instead of LA because LAX was fogged in. There was no place to stay in Vegas because the MGM hotel had just had a massive fire. The airline finally bused us to LA when enough passengers made a fuss.
We arrived after dark. I took a taxi to where I was going to stay stay but the manager was nowhere to be found. A resident took pity on me and let me call a taxi. I went to a hotel near where I would be working. This was 1980 and I did not have a major credit card but they let me check in. I think I looked about ready to lose it. I was beat from dragging my luggage around for hours.
I survived that Thanksgiving and never regretted my journey. At the age of 26, I spent my first Christmas away from home, alone, in LA, and it was 95 degrees instead of the frigid temps of Minnesota.I went to Disneyland for the first time in March 1981. Over the years I moved up the fault line from LA to San Francisco, then to Seattle. A few months in Singapore and finally in the DC area. The pandemic is just one of the challenges I have encountered. It will not defeat me.
The next morning, it was Monday by now, I reported to work and was told I was being sent to San Francisco the next day for two weeks. Off I went with no place to come back to. The hotel they put us in in San Francisco was in the Tenderloin, not a nice area, and had plexiglass in front of the check-in desk. It is amazing we what we can deal with when we have to.
In many ways, I enjoy a Thanksgiving where I don’t go anywhere or do anything. Whether you are alone or in a bubble, be safe, stay healthy, wear a mask, and anticipate 2021.
She began life as a princess in 1452, died as a Dominican nun in 1490, and was beatified two centuries later. Even though she has never been canonized, she is known in Portugal as Santa Joana Principesa, or Princess Saint Joan. More properly, she is the Blessed Joan of Portugal.
Today, the Dominican Convent of Jesus, in which Joana spent her religious life is part of the Museum of Aveiro. Established in 1458, the convent became state property after the 1834 dissolution of religious orders in Portugal. The contemporary galleries of the museum contain a large collection of religious art, most of which belonged to the Convent of Jesus and other area convents. The convent became a museum in 1911.
Princess Joana of the House of Aziz was the daughter of King Afonso V of Portugal. As a young woman, she longed for the religious life. Because she was a royal princess and in line for the throne, her father and brother refused. They wanted her to marry to establish a political alliance and, if needed, produce an heir. She refused all offers. In 1472 she entered the Convent of Jesus in Aviero. She lived a life of religious devotion and was admired even during her life; her royal connection added to the prestige of the convent.
Baroque painting from the Life of Santa Joana cycle, by Manuel Ferreira e Sousa, 1729. Joana and other characters are dressed in 18th-century costume while depicting 15h century events.
Portrait of Principesa Santa Joana, 1471. The portrait was painted while Joana served as regent during the absence of her father.
The Dominicans were a cloistered order and what little contact they had with the outside world took place in the Convent Gateway. Goods and messages, and occasionally an infant, were passed through the wheel. Visits with family and siblings took place through a larger screen allowing some visual contact.
Separation took place even during religious services. In the Church of Jesus, the convent’s small church, screens separated the nun’s choir stalls, on both levels of the church, from the nave of the church.
Screen looking down into the Church of Jesus from the Upper Choir Stalls
Chapter House and Upper Choir Stalls
Because of her royal status, however, Joana was allowed to visit court and often became embroiled in palace politics. Even while she lead a religious life, her father and brother continued to try to arrange a marriage for her, including a proposed alliance with Richard III of England.
A revival of interest in Santa Joana occurred in the 18th century. The Life of Princess Santa Joana painting cycle, on the side walls of the Baroque Church of Jesus, is signed by the Portuguese artist Manuel Ferreira e Sousa. The paintings date to 1729.
Painting of Santa Joana Principesa, Church of Jesus, 1729
Azulejo tiles, Scene of Santa Joana arriving at the convent, Church of Jesus
Constant expansion and improvements to the Convent in the 15th, 16th, and 17th centuries hide most of the Gothic origins of the complex.
Gothic door frame surrounded by Baroque decoration
Church of Jesus in the Dominican Convent of Jesus
Convent Cloister Courtyard
Joana died in 1490 at the young age of 38. Some sources say she was poisoned by an vindictive woman at court while on a visit. In 1734 a room at the Convent was decorated with gilded wood framing paintings of her life, including a scene of her death. The cross she is said to have been holding when she died is displayed adjacent to the painting.
Santa Joana Deathbed Scene, 1734
Cross said to have been held by Joana at her death
Before Joana died, she asked to be buried in a simple way, and her wish was granted. After her beatification in 1693, however, permission was given to created an ornate, inlaid Italian marble tomb. The lower choir stalls area, converted to hold the tomb, was also decorated with inlaid marble, stone, and gilded wood. The project took 11 years to complete. The screen separating the lower choir stalls from the main body of the church was retained. Santa Joana tomb was and is a pilgrimage site for those who look to Santa Joana.
Tomb of Santa Joana, Lower Choir, Church of Jesus, Convent of Jesus
From the information I have found, there is no specific miracle, incident or action that resulted in the veneration of Santa Joana. She was admired for her resistance to marrying, for her service to her religious community, and for her humility. The fact she was royalty must have also played a role. Veneration of Santa Joana continues today. The City of Aveiro marks May 12, the anniversary of her death, as municipal public holiday.
In 1968 I was in the 8th grade at a small Catholic school. There were only 13 students in my class, all girls because the three boys from our 7th grade escaped to the public school that year. Yummy, Yummy I got Love in My Tummy was popular, at least the chorus, and kids would sing the chorus at recess. The nun who taught our class, the very strict Sister Mary Matthew, or one of the other nuns, decided the song must be about sex or pregnancy or something. We were told we were not allowed to sing it until someone provided the lyrics for inspection. I have no idea whether or not anyone ever submitted the lyrics—I doubt most of us knew anything except the chorus, which is repeated over and over and over. As with other pop one hit wonders, it faded from memory probably before the nuns stopped worrying about its impact on the morals of teenagers. It seems funny to me now because no matter what it meant it was such an innocuous song.
Hugh’s 51 Weeks:51 Hits from the Past – Week 36
When How do you like me now?! was released in 1999, Toby Keith’s label wouldn’t promote it, saying that it might offend women. But, for me, it speaks to both men and women. Many of us have been there. As teenagers, didn’t we all hope that one day we would be able to smile and say to those foes (and friends) who tormented or teased or ignored us: How do you like me now?! Not that we had become country music stars. But that we have lived the life we wanted, moved beyond our comfort zones, and are content with who we are. The 2008 video Alright by Darius Rucker says it all.
Join Hugh’s 51 Weeks:51 Songs from the Past, Week 18
The New 3 Rs: Retire, Recharge, Reconnect 