Have you ever eaten nettles? Then see how to recognize and prepare them. • HAVE YOU EVER EATEN NETTLES? PANCS Learn about Renato Barros' work in São Bento do Sapucaí SP • HOW TO MAKE A RANCHO DE PAU A PIQUE Soundtrack by Thyagi Ryan / @respirasomusic Below is the text about Juca, written by journalist Galeno Amorim for Jornal da Tarde in 1989 Unshaven, a worn-out hat on his head and some old clothes to ward off the cold, Juca da Toca still lives in the Stone Age. He doesn't know that money is the cruzado, much less the name of the current president of the Republic – and, for him, the capital of Brazil is still Rio de Janeiro. In the middle of the computer age and the end of a century marked by technological advances and progress, old Juca, 83 years old, is certainly one of the last true cavemen. Disgusted with life and afraid of the city, he has lived for almost 40 years in a cave in the mountains of São Bento Sapucaí, on the border between São Paulo and the South of Minas Gerais. Among the 9,000 residents of the city, near Campos do Jordão, some say that Juca da Toca is nothing more than a legend. But there he is, lonely and strange, living 2,000 meters above sea level, under a rock where he sleeps, cooks and muses about life. He wakes up only in the cold. While the sun is not warm, I don't even go out... I'm afraid of the cold. I sleep in the dark... Juca da Toca used to be much more aloof and bothered by the presence of strangers. Now, he has changed. Old and tired, he spent a few months in the hospital and in the nursing home in the city, but only until he recovered from a wound on his leg. As soon as he recovered, he fled back to the mountains, ten kilometers from the city center, to a place that is difficult to access and can only be reached by car on sunny days. The rest of the way – about 300 meters – has to be done on foot, through trails in the mountains and with some skill. Juca survives on a pension of “ten contu”, arranged in Funrural by some local farmers. Because of his age, he rarely appears in São Bento, where he felt “quite bothered” by the teasing and insults of certain people. No one knows for sure his origins or the reasons that led the mysterious caveman to flee civilization. The hermit himself doesn’t like to talk about it much. Sometimes, he lets a clue slip. José Joaquim Ferreira was born in Barra do Paraíso, in the interior of Minas Gerais. He often clashed with his stepmother and 26 siblings, the result of his father’s three marriages. He sent me to eat and sleep in my house, but that was my home – he recalls, hurt. Juca abandoned his family at the age of 21 and never heard from his relatives again. His long pilgrimage culminated in his current home – which, despite being tiny and strange, with no door or window, refuses to be called a den. It is my home – he insists. Bread, cucumber and orange are his only daily meal. The hermit also enjoys a bit of rice and beans, which he makes himself on the improvised stove inside the rock. The food is shared with his two pet dogs and the dogs that invariably show up there to satisfy their hunger. We live in a ridiculous podium, nothing belongs to anyone... – our caveman teaches us, reticent. On top of the mountain – from where it is possible to appreciate, at night, “the lights of many cities” – Juca da Toca does absolutely nothing. When he doesn't feel lazy, he cultivates a small cucumber plantation – other times he “camps” to find some fruit. “I'm weak and needy to take care of. I can't even hunt a big game anymore…” he stammers. However, that doesn't mean he admits living in the city: “I thought some quarqué would come in and kill me… And on top of that, I was terrified of so many baths: And then, he gave me a bath every day, holy shit…” he recalls, referring to the asylum, and lets out a rare and hearty laugh. When he was younger, Juca did everything in life. He worked as a lumberjack and a calf-cutter. For a few years now, however, he has complained that they don't give him a job anymore. “It's a sin,” he muses, confessing to being Catholic, “to think about God every hour, but not regret anything in life.” He doesn't even regret never having gotten married: Oh, I wish I had... But the high-class girl was so lucky that the devil doesn't want to... Get married, get married up to ten times... But how do you deal with it? Juca da Toca himself tries to come to terms with his solitary life: The young people from around here also got lucky... Having never had any concerns about money or documents, Juca da Toca is now faced with a legal dilemma. The few friends who show up to bring him some supplies - or "have a chat" - are putting it in his head that he can benefit from the law of adverse possession and become the legal owner of the cave and the land where he lives. I don't know that... The view here is beautiful and I don't need to - he answers quickly, still scared by the nove