Photo of the day:

My nephew, John,  just sent me this photo he took of his brother, Vince, in Grotte, Sicily with my aunt, Zia Maria.  Zia Maria is one of my mom’s older sisters!  She is absolutely amazing at 93 years old.  She is sturdy, feisty, fiercely independent, and dramatic beyond imagination  (she threatened to fling herself down the stairs while I was visiting her because she was justifiably deeply upset over something personal that had just occurred and her brother had to hold her back with all his might!).  She is a fantastic cook, mother to many grown children, grandmother and great-grandmother to many more,  and a survivor of many sad events in her life.  For example, within a matter of days, she lost her twin baby girls to a fever when they were just 10 months old.  How does one survive that and other consuming tragedies life sometimes hurls our way?  My aunt is quite admirable and I realize I am so fortunate to have such strong elders in my life.  Zia Maria effortlessly walks the cobbled streets and steep hills of Grotte, Sicily, with much dignity and strength!

In this photo, Zia Maria is dwarfed by my nephew, Vince (Jeanie’s youngest son and the tallest person in my family!).  He is Ava’s  (spaghetti-faced sweetie pie featured in another blog entry) and Brynlee’s loving daddy!

Zia Maria and Vince