Here is a version of the same “Fazemos um Dia Para Nós” song, but this time set in the past and with a more gentle ‘folk song’ iteration.
If you have not yet read / heard the first version of this song - the one that establishes both the images and how much I love my wife in the present tense, perhaps now is a good time.
Read / listen to it here:
Learning with Songs
I have been very busy creating all sorts of bits and bobs to feed my obsession with learning EU Portuguese. ( Yes, this has at times created some friction within the meeting rooms, hallways, ballrooms and offices of Casa King. But this post is about both a song and how much I love my wife. So I will probably get away with it.)
But on with the version in the imperfect tense - or, as I prefer to say, “the tense for describing past events.”
Here is the song discussed in this article:
Here are the Lyrics:
Eu fazia café de manhã I used to make morning coffee
tu ainda a sonhar you still dreaming
abrias os olhos devagar you would slowly open your eyes
e já me fazias sorrir. and I would already be smiling
Tu fazias bolo na cozinha, you used to make cake in the kitchen
com música velha no ar, with old music in the air
eu fazia silêncio I would stay silent
só para ouvir o teu riso continuar. just to hear your laughter continue
oh
Tu e eu, sós You and I, alone
oh
Às vezes vinha vento, sometimes there would be wind
às vezes vinha trovão, sometimes there was thunder
mas até os dias cinzentos mereciam canção. but even grey days deserved a song.
Tu fazias a chuva cantar, you used to make the rain sing
eu fazia do amor verão, I made the summer into love
e fazíamos da Terra inteira and we would make the whole Earth
uma praia no mar das estrelas. a beach in a sea of stars.
tu e eu, sós you and I, alone
O café fazia barulho, The coffee would make noise
faziam confusão na rua, there was noise in the streets
e mesmo no meio de todos and in the middle of it all
continuava perto de ti. I would stay next to you.
oh
Tu e eu, sós You and I, alone
oh
Tu fazias festa com pouco, You used to make a celebration from nothing
vinho, pão e luz acesa, Wine, bread and a light
e o tempo parava and time would stop
quando dançávamos pela casa. when we danced through the house.
Às vezes vinha vento, sometimes there would be wind
às vezes vinha trovão, sometimes the thunder would come
mas até os dias cinzentos mereciam canção. but even the grey days deserved a song.
oh
Tu e eu, sós
oh
[Chorus]
Tu fazias a chuva cantar, you used to make the rain sing
eu fazia do amor verão, I made the summer into love
e lembro quando and I remember when
e fazíamos da Terra inteira we would make the whole Earth
uma praia no mar das estrelas. a beach in a sea of stars
oh
tu e eu, sós you and I, alone
oh Fazia café… I would make coffee
tu ainda a sonhar… you still sleeping
e fazíamos da manhã and we would make the morning
mais um dia para nós. one more day for ourselves.
oh
tu e eu
tu e eu
tu e eu, sós.
Now, as this is a song describing stuff in the past, it only uses the imperfect tense, but in the English translation, I have generally gone for the closest natural expressions.
Let’s just say right off that the English language language has a complex relationship with the imperfect tense. Infact, we don’t really have one.
In English, we can choose to say something like “I used to make coffee [everyday]” or “I was making coffee [daily]” or equally, say “I made coffee [everyday]” or even “I would make coffee [everyday]”.
In Portuguese there is one way to talk describe past situations, and another way to describe things that are completed in the past. The imperfect tense in EU Portuguese is used when you want to describe something, or something that happened regularly in the past.
Put it like this: if you went to the shops on a daily basis, or you want to tell someone about what happened on your way to the shops, you want to use the tense that describes past events [the imperfect / imperfeito]. The imperfect tense brings the reader or listener into the story, as if it is a film that is playing in their head.
What about the “perfect” tense? Well. if you were listing a bunch of jobs you ticked off your list, and one of them was “I went to the shops” you would then use the “job done and dusted” version of the past tense. This is called the “perfect’ tense because the job has been ‘perfected’ i.e. ‘completed.’ Think “done and dusted” rather than “ I am telling a story”.
Anyhow. That’s the imperfect tense explained and why you will see it in this song.
Here are some other notes:
I extended the song’s already over extended line:
e lembro quando and I remember when
e fazíamos da Terra inteira we would make the whole Earth
uma praia no mar das estrelas. a beach in a sea of stars
Could not help myself. It probably takes something away from the song, but it’s my song. Write your own if you don’t like it.
And I swapped the “meia a dormir” for “Ainda a sonhar”. Much lovelier!
I also love the sentimentality of this version. It’s borderline elegiaic / properly soppy. Please play it at my funeral.
And with that, it is time to bring this article to a close. I am cooking up a third article in this series of three about the future tense and the slightly-awkward version of this song which is, apparently, describing a future love.
Unlikely at my age.
Anyhow. If you already subscribe to a streaming platform, you can use this button to add this imperfect tense version of the song to your playlists.