33,945 days

Yesterday my paternal grandmother celebrated her 93rd birthday. She was luckily surrounded by family in Montreal, the city she immigrated to many, many years ago. She was born in Southern Italy in a small town called San Mango D ‘Aquino. She had all 4 children in this small town, in between the time her husband was away at war. Once my grandfather made the decision to move his family to the new land, they all followed.

My grandmother raised her kids in a time when homemade meals were a given, and dresses were sewn from local women. Necessity was food, milk, and the basics. Almost all the meals were made from scratch, while her husband was out at work. She experienced life without Interact, Laptops and Blackberries. She never drove a car, and she never shopped on credit. She made the best of her life, and she made the best of the things she did not have.

My grandmother has 14 grandchildren and 18 great grandchildren. She was married 70 years to the same man, when he sadly left the world almost 3 years ago. She still wakes up every morning, makes herself a coffee, turns on the radio and begins her day. Throughout the day, she makes calls..many, many calls..lol...to her family members and some friends. She hosts people when they come by to visit and she is very quick to make them a coffee, take out some cookies, and on many occasions..make a plate of fried potatoes (drenched in oil...mmmm...just the way we like it..lol) She still makes stuffed eggplants and green tomatoes in the oil.

I did not grow up in the same city as my father’s parents, but I often visited them, especially at Easter. Many years ago, when I was fresh out of College, I moved to Montreal to work at a radio station. Since I was raised in an Italian home, living on my own was unheard of, so I had to live with them, or I stayed home...that was the condition to moving away from home. So at 21, I moved in with my grandparents. I can tell you, besides getting together with my husband, it was 1 of the best summers I ever had. I was able to connect with 2 people that I very rarely spent time with. Every night my grandparents would wait for their “little” girl; with food that was prepared all day long. They were very proud to have the responsibity of “watching” me while I was in Montreal. My grandmother was so serious about her role that she felt it necessary to give me an 11 o’clock curfew..lol..I explained to her that at home, I came home much later than that. She did not care about that, I was living with her and I had to be home at that time..lol..I used to call my own father to tell his mother to loosen up..lol..she still did not budge. So I spent my nights that summer, arriving at 11pm, and then sticking my head out the window smoking my brains out..lol...ahhh the memories.

I am so glad that I was able to spend my 21st summer year with my grandparents. I learned many things that summer. I learned that a grandmother can worry more than a parent does. I learned that the street lights do go out at 11pm,..lol..and I learned that a 79 year old can still make house rules. They taught me that attitude is everything. My grandmother was in her late 70’s and she was still preparing meals every night for me when I got home. They were always happy to see me, always happy to have me, and always happy to share stories of life with me.

The one thing I can tell you is, if you have your grandparents spend time with them. Find out about their life, the challenges they faced and the trials and tribulations they endured. They also have some juicy tales about some of the women in their town.lol..which is kind of interesting because now they are pretty wrinkly and you cannot imagine them being the town Goddess..lol.. I would just sit there and be amazed at all the things they knew. They didn’t know how to Google, and they didn’t know how to text. But they knew how to help a woman in need, a woman who didn’t have enough breast milk to feed her newborn..they would breastfeed that child. They grew up in a time where it was not 1 man for himself; it was, for all mankind. They should feel proud for all they learned in life, that no book could have ever taught them.

Today I wish my father’s mother a Happy 93rd birthday. In life we can only wish of meeting and holding our grandchildren’s children. In life we can only hope that we can be responsible for not only the lives of our children, but for the many more that follow. In life we can only strive to be happy and healthy every God given day. In life we can only hope that we can be surrounded by the people we raised and the people that they raised. In life, we can only dream of living a life almost as long as a century; 33,945 days to be exact.
That’s my peace today!

This recipe is my grandmother's Easter treat she makes for all her kids and grandkids.
Easter Bread Braid
6 eggs
1 pack yeast
1/4 cup olive oil
6 cups flour
1 tsp salt
1 tsp sugar
2 cups warm water (maybe more)
flour for dough

Put the yeast in the warm water. Let sit for 10 minutes or until bubbles. In a bowl mix flour, salt, sugar and blend. Make a hole in the middle and add the yeast with water. Mix and gradually add oil. You may need to add more water, the consistency should be like a pizza dough. On a floured surface, roll out dough. Cut a thick strip, make a 4 inch circle at the top of the strip, place egg and nest the egg. At the bottom of the nest, slice into 3 strips and braid it. With the rest of the dough cut into strip and make more braids, attach to the done braid and make 5 more egg nests surrounding. The end result should be a circle of 6 egg nests with braids holding it together...sound simple enough??lol...Buona Pasqua!