For those of you who know me really well, you know how important my grandfather was, well still is to me today. He is the reason why I am here, in Italy.
My grandfather, Salvatore, also known as "Sammy" to many of his cousins, grew up in Sicily. I was fortunate enough to travel to Sicily with him 9 years ago. During that trip, I learned a lot about his childhood in Sicily. I wish I could have spoken better Italian (well Sicilian) at the time to understand what all of his cousins were actually saying about him. I could tell they shared many stories from the past and reminisced about all those memorable times. I remember someone translating or giving a few words about one particular story. It involved my grandpa and maybe a few of his other male cousins, a donkey, and his uncles yelling at the kids for letting the donkey out of the barn, which was at this point running down the street. There were many laughs as they reminisced.
For me, Italy (Sicily) reminds me of my grandfather. Yes, my grandmother is Sicilian too but she grew up in America. My grandfather stayed in contact with his family in Sicily for all of his life. He still felt it was a part of his home. I could feel it when we walked into his old house, which still had the original tile floor, and barn 9 years ago. Because of this, I have felt a strong connection with Italy as well. It was his home, where my family came from meaning it is part of my home. And it does feel like home to me. I feel comfortable and at home.
As I got older and started to travel more and more, I would tell my grandfather that I hoped to go to Italy one day and possibly work. I told him I wanted to speak Italian. I took classes at my university in preparation for the one day of possibly living and working in Italy. He would help me with my pronunciation and encourage me by telling me that I would learn it one day. Unfortunately, he passed away before I started my second course in Italian.
Even though, my grandfather is no longer here on Earth, I know that he is guiding me and helping me in every step of my new journey.
