My Memoirs - Citizen of the World

mother and confined to the house for an entire weekend. But as
always, I would find a way to get out. I would go up to our house
attic, open the skylight on the roof and jump out into the street so
that I could play with my friends. In spite of my behavior, I was
very lucky. I never got into any big trouble and always had lots of
friends, good school colleagues, and teachers for whom I always
had a great deal of respect.
Dona Laurinda Pavão
One person that was very important
in my life was my elementary
school teacher, Dona Laurinda
Pavão. I was very fortunate to have
her for a teacher. In those days,
there were only four years of
elementary school education and the
same teacher would continue to
teach the same pupils as they
progressed from the 1 st to the 4 th
grade. As a result, today I always
use good grammar, proper sentences
and the idiomatic expressions that
she taught me. She was tough, but a driving force in my life and
the person who had the biggest impact on my future education.
The elementary school that I attended was called, Escola do
Campo. It was located in the square named, Campo de São
Francisco, where the Convent and the Sanctuary of Santo Cristo is
located. My teacher, Dona Laurinda, was not only a fantastic
teacher, but also a very tough disciplinary. At the time, I felt it
was my misfortune that she lived across the street from my house,
where as my neighbor, my school performance and behavior was
always under the microscope. My mother knew every time I did
well or badly in school.
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