Monday, December 20, 2010

The Short Tale of Favela Claus

It's sad to say, but jolly Santa probably skips many houses of poor kids who live in neighbourhoods where fat white guys are targets for criminals.  This is just a kind of unintentionally morbid Christmas poem crafted while thinking about a Santa alternative who could relate better to impoverished communities, specifically the favelas of Rio.  Trying to sound like Batman in the recording was deliberate as my true dream is make the following list a reality.
Adam West 
Michael Keaton
Val Kilmer
George Clooney
Christian Bale
James Bamberger


The Short Tale of Favela Claus




Saint Nick, this fat man surely you know, he resides in a land with
Numerous reindeer and ample snow

He takes but one night to cover the Earth… to bestow, on all, gifts
And the sensation of mirth.
But peer rather closely, soon you’ll notice some gaps….
The poor kids get squat from within Santa’s sacks.

One man from Brazil did notice these flaws and attempted to become
a new hero, one aptly called Favela Claus.

Red & white were the choice of his garments & he stole a small
Van from the fire department.  He spent 1 year thieving toys
From kids with more money, he procured remote control cars
And cute, little stuffed bunnies.

This story is short & very much broken, dear Favela Claus
Would never become a holiday token.  Wished as he did, he could never ever commit, intentions and reality are different, you must admit.

On the joyous eve before Christmas, he was highly pressured to party,
By an unsavory human the locals called Marty.
They sang baile carols & danced real dirty, they stayed up late til much
Past the hour of 4:30.
Favela Claus didn’t go round the slums like he planned, instead he got so stoned
That he could not hardly stand.

He lay next to a woman with significant thighs, something displeasing
To her husband, a man twice his size. 
Before the sun came up, in the head he got shot, out came blood,
Not a little, but a lot!
The curb was a colour, the same as his suit, but the heavy rain fell
And made it dilute.

When the kids awoke later that morn,  they found nothing at all
And became depressed and forlorn.  Thus no gifts did they get that
Year or others, but not really due to Favela Claus nor their fathers
or mothers.
-----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------

While looking for information on Father Christmas's influence on the favelas, I came
across this Globo article from a couple years ago.  It's in Portuguese, though.