As an American “straniera” who hasn’t spoken Italian in over ten years, I was worried that Ciancia might not be the right place for me. My first Ciancia event, I found myself walking into the home of the lovely Rosa Burkhardt for the June meeting with a heart racing from nerves but equally open to possibility. Would I fit in with my stumbling vocabulary and occasional errors in conjugation? I knew the answer the minute I walked into Rosa’s kitchen. Si, yes, certo! … Ma perchè, era proprio una domanda?
The palpable warmth in the room, the pure and easy acceptance of a stranger, the glorious food, all the cheek kissing … it was exactly what I had been missing in my life. Exactly. As an American who grew up in Italy, I have lived in both worlds: the authentically American life and the very exuberant Italian one (is there anything else in crazy Napoli?). My most formative years were spent immersed in the loving, emotional, loud, fragrant world that is the essence of Italy. After an experience like this, no matter where one goes, whatever far corners of the earth one travels to, you carry the spirit of Italy with you. And that is why I joined Ciancia – to find her again.
So what exactly was I looking for? What was missing in my life that I could only find amongst the Italians? From the moment they are born, Italians are smothered with kisses; the aunts, uncles, i nonni, even young brothers and sisters give forth affection without thinking twice. This openness of emotion and physical closeness follows through to adulthood and is the common thread that makes all Italians, whether here or abroad, seem like one big happy family. Okay, maybe not always so happy but still, one big, loving family.
I have joined many clubs in my lifetime and taken classes where I saw the same faces every day for an entire semester, but the equivalent essence and openness could never be found. Never mind cheek kisses – we sometimes didn’t even exchange names! So I want to thank all the members of Ciancia, even those I haven’t met yet (because I know already that you will be just as warm and welcoming as your fellow members that I have had the fortune of meeting thus far) for accepting a “straniera” who loves Italy and all things Italian into your world with such open arms and exuberant kisses. It is the first time in my life that I have felt such an immediate connection of “family” in any club in the United States.
Mille grazie, thank you Ciancia, for bringing an authentic, open and affectionate slice of the true character that is Italy to Atlanta, Georgia, U.S.A. Con affetto e baci, Christina Wood, new member