Rosa and her sisters Julia and Basilia came to live on Tribuna Island in 1986, after a fierce storm destroyed their home on another island. We were swept away by the wind. Twenty years ago, a newly married couple would have built themselves an island, naming it after themselves. Now settlements are larger and many of the little islands have been abandoned and left to rot. We don't jump on each other after a goal, or we'd probably fall through the field.
Island life carries other hazards.
When the wind gets up we try to anchor the island with eucalyptus trunks. Nevertheless, they are vulnerable to some common ailments. Something, perhaps the constant exposure to the freezing water, gives them frequent respiratory infections and rheumatism, and the sun burns their cheeks. Ironically, in the midst of so much water, their gas stoves cause devastating fires. The lake is large, and their population small, so the human pollution of the water has made no noticeable impact.