“The Sun and the Moon were once lovers,” the young man tells me, “but they were separated by the god Tupa.” We are standing waist-deep in the clear blue waters of the Tapajoós, watching for dolphins. “They were impossible lovers,” he says. His dark eyes dart into mine to make sure I understand what he means.
“But sometimes they meet. Not often. It is called. . . .” He is looking for the word in English.
“The eclipse,” says Dianne.
“Yes. Eclipse,” he says. “But it is rare that they meet, very rare.”
Exiled to a realm separate from her beloved, the moon wept. And according to the creation myth of the Mawé Indians of Amazônia, that is how their world was formed: “They say it is the moon’s tears that formed the Amazon,” Felicio says. “It is the river of impossible love.”
