My Nonna
My Nonna
My Nonna lived to age eighty-six,
and Rosa was her given name.
From Italy, she settled in New York,
and married my dear Nonno, who
from Florence came so long ago.
Nonna, such a kind and gentle soul,
taught me to understand her words.
Although I never could speak it well,
she did convey her thoughts to me
through her native Italian dialect.
She was a seamstress and as such,
designed and made my fancy clothes;
some adorned with her embroidery...
all works of art by her creative hands.
It was she who taught me how to sew.
I still remember her salt and pepper
hair, so long, but wound up in a bun.
Her face that looked a tad older than
she was, from quite a stressful life
in growing up...but as a mother too.
My Nonna did outlive her only son,
who she lost to World War II.
My Nonna outlived my Mom, who
succumbed to cancer at age fifty-five.
To lose two children, way too young...
a double tragedy for her it was.
And so, we bonded closer after that.
I still remember her loving arms
around me, soft but very strong,
and the security I always felt within.
I so much miss her still today...
my loving, caring, sweet, Nonna.
March 3, 2019
Note: Nonna means Grandma in Italian;
Nonno, Grandpa
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