E' bbelle l'Abruzze me! *

Spring exploded everywhere but it's even more fantastic in Abruzzo, my native region. I can perfectly figure out the contrasts of the blue water with the crystal sea and the green vegetation with the background of the mountains with still snow on top.

Please view this pics while listening to this tune. You'll appreciate them even more. 

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This year I won't go, not even a weekend is planned. I try not to care. It's part of my destiny and I embraced it. It means that I'll apreciate the visit to its fullest when I finally go with a free spirit, able to enjoy everything without disgraceful memories. I keep faith over here, like any stubborn Capricorn. My time will come, too. 

In the meanwhile I indoctrinate Alice about my roots and culture. One of the most vivid is music indeed. Folklore is so alive and innerly present. It doesn't matter if Ikea had to send a letter to local politicians to ask them to stop sending letters of recommendations for hiring in the new branch opening near Pescara. They received over 3000 resumes out of 220 vacancies available, which shows how dramatic the unemplyment situation in central Italy. That's not what interests me. I want my daughter to know only the finest values​​ and we have plenty of them. 

Today I showed her this video. We danced and sang together. I'm sharing it with you too. Look how beautiful costumes are, how vivid people are, what lovely places, what yummy food. And, above all, listen to the sounds of the bells at the end. They characterized both my childhood/adolescence and early adulthood. When I heard this out of the blue I was moved. I got lost in a whirlwind of memories. if I close my eyes I see everything again. I remember everything perfectly and I can even smell strong odors.

"Dalla muntagne alla marine si cant e poi si beve lu vine, dalla marine alla muntagne si fa l'amore e poi si magne!" ("From mountains to sea it's all about singing and drinking, from sea to mountains it's all about making love and eating afterwards instead!")

I can still hear my grandfather's voice singing and playing his instrument, laughing and teaching and living. He was so alive. His world was so colorful even from his wheelchair. I miss you so, Nonno Nicola. I wonder what you think of this whole mess over here since you left ...

I know what matters most is what I feel in my heart, something that goes beyond the merely visual. I know one day I will return and when I do, I'm going to enjoy the visit without false expectations or too many regrets. And finally I know that when I come back it's because I can really be in Abruzzo. Because the sun always comes out in the end. 

* My Abruzzo is beautiful!