Heartbeatgoa.memories -The young poet's heart fluttered- Francis Rodrigues, Toronto

The young poet's heart fluttered. She was seventeen, and more beautiful than hecould ever have imagined. Doe-like eyes set in peaches-and-cream, a smileto kill for, and a plait of the most beautifulthick tresses that swept down her to her daintyfeet. Her mother, a great movie buff, had named herafter the gorgeous Katherine Hepburn. He met her on his evening walks past the Gatewayof India, after his day job as a journalist atBori Bunder. She never spoke much, but smiled shyly when heread out his little verses on his beloved Konkaniand Mangalore. She was originally from Bandra, and as he wasfrom next-door Mahim, love was just a glance away. Just out of school, she desperately needed a job.So he spoke to a friend, who knew a sous-chef atthe Taj. Front-office hired her immediately. Six monthslater she was swept away to the Gulf by a richsuitor who had stayed at the Taj. All he had left was a telephone number, retrievedby the sous-chef. He called sadly. "Yeo, Yeo, Cathrina!" (Come, come back, Cathrina!) And she - "Na, Na, Yeuchina!" (No, no, I'm never coming back!) And thus was born "Cathrina" one of the biggestKonkani blockbuster hits ever, by the wonderfullygifted Henry D'Souza, of Mangalore. Maybe the story's a tad apocryphal :-) But still, a love story to warm the cockles. There's lots more - with the original music,lyrics, stories, translations, everything - in the"Greatest Konkani Hits" SongBook, a can't missgift. Twenty-three days to its release......andcounting!http://goanvoice.org.uk/newsletter/2009/July/2009_July_28.html Meanwhile, here goes - "Cathrina"http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VKc7Q3ZLRzQ Musically yours,Francis.