Through the Arc of the Rain Forest

Batista and Tania’s pigeon’s flight back home becomes a local event. Neighbors gather, sell snacks, and play music. Kazumasa and the ball enjoy watching the fervor from their apartment. Lourdes, always timid and kind with Kazumasa, explains that the messages the pigeon delivers are believed to be prophetic; some neighbors won the lottery based on their interpretations of a pigeon message. A boy even tries to steal one of the messages, causing panic, so Batista hires three bodyguards to keep his family and bird protected.

Batista himself writes the messages before releasing the bird to fly home. He finds “the messages came of their own accord when the time came to write them, and it always amazed him that what he had taken a few minutes to conjure and write should have such significance on its arrival” (34). Many speculate over the divinity of the messages. Batista does not see himself as a prophet but nevertheless enjoys his increased notoriety. When the pigeon delivers a new message that reads “‘The Japanese with the ball will find friendship and fortune in Brazil,’” the message sends the community into a frenzy (34). Everyone tries to interpret the message, harassing Japanese men everywhere in the city to buy lotto tickets.