A Huge Soccer Victory and a Bag of Chickens

Special note: we have fallen behind posting videos and photos, but we are going to be on a boat for the next few days with lots of opportunities to catch up. Please be patient and we will post as soon as we can. 

January 17, 2026

It’s a bittersweet day, as we realize that this is our last day of work in our beloved community of Anã. We welcome the idea of taking a break, but we don’t welcome the idea of saying goodbye. We’ve already taken the jobs farther than they were expected to get in this time period, but we still want more, more, more!

We moved quickly to get to the worksite (everyone in the garden complex, either at the chicken coop or the planting beds). The coop folks finished the door, sealed more of the coop enclosure, and got everything set for chickens to move in. The garden people kept moving through those bagged saplings, freeing them from each other and sorting them for distribution throughout the community. We finally got the hang of removing them from each other without destroying their taproots, sometimes using a posthole digger (called a draga in Portuguese) or machetes. We used those same machetes to take out stumps, some of which we created over the last few days and some of which pre-existing our arrival. Tonico reconnected the pipewater source and Joelma started compiling lists of worthy recipients of some of the valuable starts. 

Throughout most of this time, Shawny and Jesse had gone by quadricycle (a 4-wheeled motorcycle like thing that they use for fighting fires, among other things) to the nearby community of Maripá. It turns out that Tonico and Joelma both grew up there and each contacted relatives over there to see if they would sell us some chickens. Tonico’s sister was willing so that’s where they went. 

They took a rough ride through a narrow path in the rainforest, crossing creeks spanned by handmade bridges and zooming up slippery slopes while dodging limbs and brush alongside and over the path. They arrived at a bustling chicken farm with chicks, hens, and roosters frolicking all over the place. There was much negotiation over how many of which kinds the farm could spare, and in the end they left with five hens and one rooster. Joelma and Tonico’s sister tied their legs together and stuffed them in a white flour sack for the journey to Anã. Tonico’s son had shown up at his aunt’s house (the chicken farm) on his motorcycle, so they sent the bag of chickens back to the coop with him so they would get home faster. 

 As he (Ailson) started motoring the chickens toward their new home, the quadricycle people (Shawny, Jesse, Joelma, and the driver) stopped at a fledgling ecotourism site in Maripá on the bank of the Tapajós River. It’s a sweet little beachside eating establishment in a community where very few tourists ever venture. People arrange ahead of time to lunch there, and the proprietor and his mother get everything organized for them. They were aware of our groups and our impact on Anã. They let us know that they had lots of needs and would welcome a visit from the DIRT crew to their community. We’ll see. 

Back at the viveiro, Ailson arrived at garden with his bag of chickens, but only Junio could recognize what was going on. He yelled out “Chickens!” and we all flooded toward the coop following the bag. Junio opened the bag and untied the chickens one by one as some of us watched from inside the coop while others watched from outside. The five hens and one rooster seemed to adapt to their new larger enclosure pretty quickly. Lots of us were filming and we were ecstatically happy. We each fed them a handful of corn kernels and then gathered in the garden area to do a brief reflection led by Marlina. 

We talked about how grateful we felt that the community trusted us with their property and their projects. Lots of us talked about our relationships with and affection for Junio, and he, in turn, talked about all that he had learned from us and all that the community had gained because we came. He said that he had more to say but would wait until we were really saying goodbye. Many tears were shed and we are certain that many more will come. 

We went back to camp, had lunch, and then got surprised by a real Amazon rainshower, which we haven’t fully experienced in our whole time here. Someone shouted out “laundry!” and we all ran for the lines and frantically grabbed our not-quite-dry clothes. The frenzy was so crazy that once we got our clothes under cover, we immediately ran back out into the rain and frolicked like maniacs. We kicked the soccer ball around, danced, sang, and hugged in huge groups. It was stupid. And it was fun. 

Once the rain stopped and we were all wet anyway, we made a run for the river and had even more ridiculous fun. We filtered back up slowly but surely and started to prep for the big soccer games. We drank guarana, which is a highly caffeinated soft drink here. We got ready to be humiliated. 

And then we went to the field. Hardly anyone was there, as even the opposing team had not yet shown up. We determined that the women would play first, in a match composed of two twenty-minute periods. Then the men for the same duration. We warmed up a bit and an announcer started hyping up the games on a loudspeaker that could likely be heard throughout the entire community. We got our Brazilian teammates organized with our four US players (Isabelle, Lilly, Ava, and Sofia). And then we noticed on all of the edges of the field that people were starting to come out into their yards and more people came to the same place where we were sitting along the sidelines. The announcer really got going about the importance of this game and about the longstanding relationship between us and the people of Anã. 

The game suddenly started and our players were running around like crazy, staying right on the ball constantly and making some amazing blocks and passes. Sofia was particularly feisty out there, as we have never seen her in competition mode before. Ava was wearing literal combat boots to play and we were begging her to use them to slam a ball the length of the field. Lilly was running from side to side and chasing down the Brazilians every time they got things going in their favor. And Isabelle revealed her warrior side as she pestered her opponents relentlessly. Our Brazilian teammates had a few practiced plays that almost worked for us, but our women did not manage to score. The Brazilian team, on the other hand, slipped one over our Brazilian goalkeeper, but we all realized that it was just a great shot that was almost impossible to stop. It looked like we might get another shot off near the very end, but time ran out before we pulled it off. Sigh. 

Then came the men’s game. Our men were amped up. As were the Brazilians who were playing on our team. In fact, when the game was about to start, there were 13 players out there in our jerseys and we had to strip out a few of the local volunteers who were hoping to play for our side. 

The game started hard and fast. It was clear that it was going to be physical and competitive. One advantage we had going for us was that the day was overcast, so the temperature was not as debilitating as it often is. We definitely met the challenge. James was our goalkeeper and the Brazilians slipped one by him somewhat early in the game. We had some questions about whether the player had actually scored but our challenges were not entertained as valid. 

But we did not get demoralized. We reorganized and started driving for the goal. There were some rough personal fouls against us (Taylor took a tumble, bounced off his own chest, spun around, and popped right back up like a ninja) and we committed a couple of fouls as well (Thomas was particularly adept at meting those out). James did some great diving blocks against their shots on goal and Brendan did a fabulous job of hustling around and bothering the Brazilians in the corners into making mistakes on which he capitalized. Oscar looked like he was playing American football at times (but not in such a way that he was breaking any rules) and he kicked some long balls far into our territory to help us make lots of shots on goal. Casey used his height to intimidate his Brazilian foes and pulled off some amazingly precise headers at really opportune moments. Gianni ran around and around the other side, disorienting and confusing them and goading them into mistakes. 

But the stars of the show turned out to be Taylor and Guido. Taylor scored the first U.S. goal, just perfectly placing it between all of the aggressive defenders and dropping the ball right in the space it needed to go. He was ecstatic, as was our whole side of the field. The announcer was screaming into the PA system, but you would hardly know it because we were outyelling him by far. And later, Guido, who had been zooming up and down the field like he had been assigned to run laps, pulled off a perfect combination with an assist from Tonico to score the winning goal. Of course, we had to hold them back for a bit before we could be sure that WAS the winning goal, but things worked out in our favor and we reigned supreme. 

As we said earlier, we have played quite a few soccer games in this community over the years (maybe 30 or so?) and until tonight we had only won once. That one was a 2-0 victory by the U.S. women over the Brazilians. And now, after all of these years, we have our first men’s team victory! The level of joy on that field after the game was impossible to measure. We took a big group photo with all of us and many of our local friends right out on the soccer field after the game. Taylor and Guido both got interviewed over the PA system and represented themselves and all of us well. 

We came home under the understanding that there would be a “cultural night” with our local hosts. But we secretly knew that the kitchen was plotting a surprise party for Jesse’s birthday, which is January 23. He has spent many birthdays here and they didn’t want to miss the chance to do it again, even if we will be back in the U.S. by that date. We actually managed to surprise him and we got to hear and deliver speeches of appreciation. Our hosts were tearing up talking about what our relationship has meant to them and a few of us just could NOT stop crying happy tears of joy out of love for this place. James (whom they call “Maui”) spoke for us and expressed our appreciation for their excellent hospitality and for creating a second home for all of us. He talked about how much we enjoyed the food, the friendships, the community, the work, and everything else that we experienced here. He expressed our love and admiration for everyone we have met here and they were very grateful for his words. 

Speaking of James, he is our Purple Biker of the day. We knew a long time ago that we were saving his induction for the soccer game, because we knew he would be the keeper and he would either deserve congratulations or condolences for the game. He was excellent at his job on the field, but he is also a master at the roles he plays in our group off the field. He is an excellent worker who is very committed to the projects at hand, he is skilled at connecting across the language barrier, he is a friendly and warm personality that appeals to everyone, and he has formed deep friendships here that will long outlast this trip. We are fortunate to have James among us and we are happy to induct him into the Order of the Purple Bike!