Saligao Serenade

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

As the well-known American priest and psychologist Michael Garanzini once said, “Children are excellent observers but poor interpreters.” They observe everything that others do, but they are poor interpreters of these actions; they know exactly what you are doing but they don’t know exactly what it means.

A lady in Saligao once told me of the time when her father had died. She was still a child then, and had observed that her mother did not cry at all on that sad occasion. Many many years later when the topic happened to be discussed, her mother explained to her: “I was trying to keep that traditional stiff upper lip for the sake of the children. I wanted them to know that their father was in heaven and that death isn’t a tragedy. I didn’t want to show my own grief, especially not to the children.” So she kept back her emotions, and her little girl concluded, “You didn’t love my father, did you? You didn’t love him at all. I loved my father and you didn’t!” And so, the little girl landed up hating her mother for years. And it was all based on a child’s excellent observation and faulty interpretation. This lady told me that the incident affected her deeply and she barely communicated with anyone else for many years, until she heard Fr. Desmond D’Souza (from Nigvaddo, Saligao) speaking on “What happens to people when they communicate effectively.” Read the rest of this entry »

Saligao Serenade is one year old today, 27 December 2009. We thank all our readers, well wishers, collaborators, and those who commented on the essays, for keeping Saligao Serenade vibrantly alive. In the coming months you will see an even better and brighter Saligao Serenade, with enhanced design, many more photographs, and a bit of audio and video as well. Please do continue to visit regularly and send in your feedback and comments, as that’s what keeps us motivated and enthusiastic to do more. Now that Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas is online again (his Gmail id is najoma8) you can be sure that every comment will be responded to. And, as always, you can expect some well-researched, insightful and interesting essays from Fr N!

Best wishes for a super 2010.

- Val Souza, Editor

[Fr Nascimento says: At the time of the Golden Jubilee of the foundation of the Instituto de Saligao (1979), Professor J Patrocinio de Souza, a Mollebhattkar, wrote an article giving his impressions on why this Institute was established by the prominent and wise men of Saligao - namely, Antonio Jose Souza Cordeiro, Vitorino Saldanha and Dr Rudolfo de Melo - at Arrarim and not in another place in the village, though there were quite a few who aired their differences at the time.]

by Prof J Patrocinio de Souza

The Golden Jubilee Celebrations of the Saligao Institute evoke in my mind nostalgic memories of our beautiful village and of its unforgettable Institute. I lived in Saligao during the first critical quinquennium of the history of the Institute. Its image is indelibly stamped on my mind, for on my way to and from Mater Dei I could not help passing by the Institute four times on every school day. Read the rest of this entry »

by Mel D’Souza

Although Konkani is the language widely spoken in Goa, in the old days there was a separate vocabulary that was used by villagers to communicate with their pets and domesticated animals.

“Bish, bish, bish” was a way of calling out to a dog if one didn’t know it’s name. As soon as the dog got closer, the caller would stretch out the right hand and rub the thumb against the other fingers to simulate a handout of food. Although they understood the call, not all dogs responded spontaneously; they preferred to keep a safe distance from people they didn’t know. Read the rest of this entry »

[Fr Nascimento says: It is so interesting to walk through Arrarim in the company of erudite and knowledgeable Yvonne Vaz Ezdani, author of the book 'Songs of the Survivors'.  She describes this walk in her own inimitable style.]

by Yvonne Vaz Ezdani

Another pleasant evening. The walk today is through different wards in another part of Arrarim. This quaint and winding road branches off from CHOGM Road at Calangute Police Station. I pass Hillside Restaurant which serves delicious Goan cuisine and also caters for parties and functions. A little further on the flour mill advertises itself with the racket of the grinding machine which can be heard from a distance. To my left two small stores and a telephone booth have come up and serve as a meeting place for the people of Bairo Alto. Previously this ward was also known as Marod. Read the rest of this entry »

[Fr Nascimento says: It is so interesting to walk through Arrarim in the company of erudite and knowledgeable Yvonne Vaz Ezdani, author of the book 'Songs of the Survivors'.  She describes this walk in her own inimitable style.]

by Yvonne Vaz Ezdani

It is a cool and pleasant evening in September 2008, a beautiful time for a walk through Arrarim.  To walk through the lanes and intersecting pathways of the whole of Arrarim will take me two evenings. Today, I choose the more picturesque route from the CHOGM Road past the Hindu crematorium and the Catholic cemetery. The huge mango tree that fell during the last monsoons has not been totally cleared away yet; too difficult to chop up and tow away, I guess. The earth vibrated so much when this gigantic tree fell that about 15 meters away the pillars and archway at the entrance of the cemetery cracked and collapsed.  The new pillars and archway are still under construction, fenced in by the metal wicket fence. Read the rest of this entry »

courtesy Joel D’Souza (posted to goanewsclips@yahoogroups.com)

Fr Manuel Gomes, Director of the Diocesan Centre for the Biblical Apostolate and Professor of Pastoral Institute, Old Goa, released Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas’ fifth book and the second in the series entitled ‘Follow Me’, at the St Pius X Pastoral Institute, Old Goa, on 13th February evening. Fr Joseph A Rowland Salema, the director of Pastoral Institute, who was the Guest of Honour, reviewed the interesting study of history of Tiswadi or Ilhas, written by Saligao-born Fr Nascimento, beginning with the historico-geographical, religious and political situation of both pre- and post-Portuguese era. The fifth chapter traces briefly the history of each church of Tiswadi, its evangelisation and detailed lists of the Parish Priests along with their bio-data.

Click this link to watch a video clip of the launch, courtesy goamovies on YouTube

by Fr Nascimento Mascarenhas

In Saligao and in the rest of Goa, a day or two preceding the wedding day it was customary for the families of the bride and groom to separately hold a ceremonial bath function at their respective houses for the bride-to-be and the groom-to-be. Most Catholic families observed this Ros Kaddunk ceremony, and while it is not as common today, this traditional practice does take place even among Goan families who have settled in other parts of India or the world. Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

After having passed through an avenue of coconut palms and flat fields of Khotla in Saligao, I begin my walk from the middle of the road that passes Grande Morodd and Nagoa village proper. This road also links with the Dom Pedro V road that runs from Mapusa to Parra on its onward journey through Saligao, Pilerne, Reis Magos (Verem), connecting to the National Highway 17, at the Mandovi bridge, and proceeding till Panjim, the capital of Goa. Read the rest of this entry »

by Fr. Nascimento Mascarenhas

For the Golden Jubilee extravaganza of the Church of Saligao in 1923, it was unanimously decided that Manuel Antonio de Mendonca from Cotula (affectionately referred to as Manuelinho) would be the right person to plan and execute the entire affair. And this he did superbly. Read the rest of this entry »