Meetings
We’ve had balmy weather since the weekend, a “Scirocco” that has made heating unnecessary though it’s a great deal warmer outside than in. The sun has disappeared behind the buildings and no longer hits my balcony, but does leave its mark in the square below and I often see people sitting on the two benches next to the war memorial, taking it in.
The last of it, we all know, though the fall
Home Once More
It’s the fourth morning, and the first time I’ve slept through the 5:45 street sweeper roaring under the windows. It’s the fifth sunny day in a row – chilly at first, giving way to warmth as the sun makes its lowering arc across the southern horizon.
The boiler works, the phone works, and I am back in touch with the world, now that my magic chiavetta has been loaded with 25 Euros. My suitcases
Sadness
I don’t usually take sneaky pictures, but I wanted this one. Having my breakfast at a cafe in Perugia one August morning some years ago, I was caught by this man and his expression. Except for raising his ice cream cone to his mouth now and then he was perfectly still. Where was he? I wondered. What was he thinking? Just watching him made me deeply sad, but it was not a bad feeling.
Sadness
Between Worlds
Imagine a moving sidewalk, as at an airport. Now imagine another one running parallel to it, traveling at the same speed. Put a translucent panel between the two, so that what is seen through it is a blur of color and shape and movement, giving you a sense of what you see but without detail.
Now imagine that one side is a particular life, in a particular setting, and on the other is another –
Leaving
Eight fifteen and the sun is still catching the facade of St. Giovanni. The days are long, and warm. Keeping the house cool requires shutting doors and shutters on the sunny side during the day, leaving the house gloomy but at least not as warm as outside. The sun hits the balcony about eleven and only retreats after the six o’clock bells.
This period of getting-ready-to-leave feels like a
In which I re-enter my life in America, ponder various aspects of my life in Italy as well as the one here, and make my plans to go back.
