In a recent article, a Canadian expat who has been teaching English in Brazil for the last decade provided an apt quote about life in the country:
"Living here is not easy by any stretch of the imagination. Brazil is one of the most bureaucratic nations I have ever heard of and many of the rules and regulations simply don't make any sense whatsoever. One just has to accept the Brazilian way of doing things and exercise lots of patience."Brazil is a big and beautiful country with many positive characteristics. The bureaucracy and regulations, however, can be intense and stifling. We've found acceptance and patience, as counseled by the above-cited expat, to be the best forward. We would add trust in God and his plan as an essential ingredient to sane living here as well. The final component that I have found helpful is "pessimistic persistence," a new term I just coined. Pessimistic persistence© is the art of insisting and not giving up in the attempt to resolve a conflict or accomplish something, all the while holding absolutely no expectations the persistence will pay off. Believe it or not, it's a form of optimism, as I have found myself happily surprised by the number of times there has been a pay off, in spite of the bureaucratic rules and regulations!
