Adaptation of Mia Couto's novel "A River Called Time, A House Called Earth." When the gravedigger's shovel tried to dig into the ground to cover Dito Mariano's grave, it hit a surface as hard as steel. A storm broke out in the sky and a sense of awe swept over the family members present at the funeral. Whose fault was it that the earth would not open? Discord broke out among the women. Dulcineusa, the matriarch of the family, declared: "The earth will not open because there is a secret to be revealed."

Young writer sells a soap-opera script to a TV network and manages to place his girlfriend in an important role.

Nineteen-year-old Julio heads to Lisbon from the provinces and gets a job as a shoemaker for his uncle Raul. But when he meets Ilda, a confident young housemaid who becomes a regular shop visitor, his working-class values collide with the bourgeois trappings of modern life.

A peaceful head of the family wins the lottery, changing the family's life.