brazilian coffee break

I was in the kitchen at work getting my morning coffee. A coworker (who is from Brazil and as he says, "hears with an accent") started telling me a story about going to a celebration this past weekend for a friend, another Brazilian, that was held at a local Benedictine Monastery. He was in the kitchen with his friends cooking, when an 85-90 year old nun walked in and said, are you from Brazil? They said yes, and she started telling them about when she ministered in Brazil 40 years before and how she loved this one drink made from a special Brazilian rum. They told her they had it. She asked if she could have a sip. My friend's friend told her that she deserved a whole cup, but first he had to ask her a question. Would he go to heaven? She told him if she could have a whole cup, she'd pray for him every day until her last.

Now, this was granted, a funny story. However, I was a bit puzzled. Was he telling me the story because I'm a fellow Catholic? Did he know my nun-news and thought it was a way to get me to tell him? (I haven't broadcast it yet to the whole office - good friends know, but I figured I'd wait at least until I'm accepted as a candidate to tell everyone.) Or was he just being the quintessential weird Brazilian guy in the office?

I was mulling this over and figured it was that he was angling for me to tell him my nun-news (with a bit of the last one too!). So I went into his office and asked, "I can't remember, have I told you my news yet?". He looked at me expectantly but with a purposefully blank face, "No." So I told him. "Good for you, if that's what you feel called to do," he said. And then proceeded to tell me about his cousin in Brazil who's been a nun for 30 years but is leaving now because she's not happy with the way her order is going.

Hmmmm…. all I wanted was some morning coffee to wake up and face piles of administrative rules that need writing!

So now, that's what I'll do. Have a good day everyone!