Show Me the Money!

It’s a lazy Sunday morning and I am watching the travel channel. They are featuring Bologna and my mouth is watering at the images of fresh mortadella, tortellini and all things Italian. Déjà vu really hit hard as images of Italy flashed before me. I still think Italy is a great travel destination, the food, the coffee, the sights are all amazing and I do miss many things Italian.

Now let’s fast forward to now: Yesterday we were at the park with Veronica when we spotted a cute little girl named Stella paying near the waters edge. I said to Veronica “Guarda, che un’altra bimba come te.” Stella’s mother came over to chat with me. She asked me if I was speaking Italian and when I said “yes” she told me Stella was Italian too. It turns out that her husband is from Verona and she is from Seattle. They are visiting for a week and head back tomorrow. We began talking about life in Italy vs. life in Seattle. There were many similarities in our experiences. She’s afraid to have another baby in Italy because she is worried about the being told she is can’t gain much weight. She is also a stay at home mom giving English lessons on the side but has no real job prospects. As we compared notes, I began to realize more and more how lucky I am to be back. She hopes her husband finds a job back in the states so they will not struggle economically. Surprisingly Demetrio was the first to sing praises about being back in the U.S. and how hard life was in Italy. The other man actually said to us, “I think you (Demetrio) are the only other person who speaks worse of Italy than I do.” My dear husband seems to talking the talk, but in no way walking the walk. He has to convince himself, not others.

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