Mary Poppins

Dear Friends,

Today after Mass I went with Fiorella and Giorgio to visit Aurelio's mom, Giorgio's grandma. It was really nice to see how family takes care of each other here. I really hate the mindset in America that once a person gets old to the point where they become a burden the best thing to do is move them into an assisted living home. That will not be the case for my family if I have anything to say about it.

During our visit, I overheard Fiorella tell her sister-in-law something in Italian that included the words "Mary Poppins." When I looked at her she explained to me that I am her "Mary Poppins" because I am her teacher.

The idea made me smile since Mary Poppins is one of my favorite stories of all time but the more I thought about it the more I realized that I am not the teacher here. Yes, I am helping her family with English but she and her culture are teaching me so many more things. And while yes, I now know that you must wear red (preferrably underwear) on New Years Eve for good luck and that if you have cold hands it means you're in love...the things I'm really learning are about how to live in a way that enjoys every minute life.

Italy is very much and event orriented culture, meaning they don't worry about "how much time" or "when" but rather they concern themselves with having the most fun at the party and making the most delicious food possible and spending quality time with the people they meet.
Coming from a very time orriented culture it has been difficult for me to adjust to this new approach to life, but from everything I've witnessed, I have to conclude that America could do with a little less "how long will it take"s and a little more "ciao, what did you do this week"s.

It almost seems to me to be an attempt to capture and revel in beauty. The beauty of life, the beauty of love, the beauty of God's creation and the beauty of relationships.

Last night we (Aurelio, Fiorella, Giorgio and I) went with Sophies family to visit Ascoli Piceno, a very historical town with old churches and architecture. We spent a good 2-3 hours walking around seeing everything there is to see there. (I saw a piece of street that has been there since the Roman Empire)
And the idea of Italian's wanting to capture beauty was only reinforced by the majestic artistry inside all the churches. It made me ask myself why modern churches don't try harder to make a place that worship's God - the essence of beauty - more beautiful.

Beauty has always been important to me...don't ask me why but ever since I was little I've been infatuated with all things lovely. You could probably say it is a fault of mine since I desire to be always surrounded by beautiful things - which, let's be honest, these days beauty tends to have a huge price tag. My point in sharing all this is to remind you that there are more important things out there than time and money no matter what our culture tells us...and whether or not it's difficult for you to see them I challenge you to look past what American society defines as important and see what you can learn from a different perspective.

Hoping God's beauty finds you this day,

Sarah