LISTEN TO MY MEMORIES
The songs of my youth are with me still. Golden arias
forever lost in the echoes of time. They fill my heart
with unforgettable memories, sometimes happy, sometimes sad.
Listen and you will hear...
The soft whirr of a brightly colored hummingbird's wings
The murmuring leaves of a medlar tree in a high wind
The angry roar of a stormy sea
Nonna's fervent prayer to St. John the Baptist, as the fury
of the tempest reaches a high crescendo
A mother's sorrowful wail at her son's funeral
The family children reciting a Novena in lyric, unsure voices
The languid chant of the evening Rosary
The majesty of the Gregorian Mass at Santa Rosalia
A churchbells' plaintive ring, thin and far away
The sing song dialect of vendors, hawking their wares in the market place
Enchanted hours of play in the Greek Temple at Segesta
The laughter and whispers of passionate vows between young lovers
The clip of a peasant's sharp curved knife, as it
cuts away a bunch of ripe grapes from the vine
The squish of grapes crushed under heavy boots,
and the gurgle of golden liquid as it pours into wooden casks
A rooster's crow at dawn, heralding a new day
The soft chirps of newly hatched yellow chicks
The pitiful bleating of a lamb as it's being slaughtered
The tinkle of bells signalling the goat herder's arrival with
warm foamy milk for the morning coffee
The melodious sound of mandolins at weddings and Feast Days
The merry rhythm of an accordion playing the Tarantella
The nostalgic folk songs sung at family gatherings
A farmer, in his vineyard, singing an aria from Cavalleria Rusticana
The lusty songs of fishermen as they haul in their nets
The lonely bray of a donkey echoing through the still night air
The rattle of cartwheels on the stony road to my grandparents farm
The loud hum of bees gathering honey on a hot, sleepy summer day
A brook, sparkling in the sun, racing its way to the gulf of Castellammare
The sharp clip-clop of a mule's hooves on cobblestones
The sweet voice of Sister Caterina as she recites the day's school lesson
The animated stories old Don Nunzio told about his adventures at sea
These are my memories of Sicily...the songs of my youth.
Written by: Angela Contino Donshes
(Copyright © 1998)Back to top
