This is the recounting and the diary of my life - Marino Mattei

23.

The time passed quickly and we soon arrived at our departure date. This move we were undertaking was not an easy thing to do. As I've said, I was already older and I knew the trouble that was awaiting me; going to a new land, not knowing the language, having the responsibility of a family on my shoulders and Maurizio who was always having health problems. However, desperation gave me the courage to carry through with my plans. I have written about what my life was like at the Italpresepio [where he worked for 12 years - see parts 19 through 22] but not what happened to me from one day to the next. I will never forget those specific incidents but I do not want to address them here. On April 16, 1961 we left the port of Genova and a week earlier I quit my job in order to organize my affairs and pack the few things we were taking with us.

I will always remember my final Christmas in Italy in 1960. As was customary, we spent Christmas in Corgelia [at Pietro and Libia's house - his sister-in-law and her husband]. Myself, Marta and Maurizio stayed there for two days. They left for Coreglia at around noon but I could not leave with them because I had to go feed Libia's rabbits. I was carrying a load of grass and I recall that snow was falling. By the time I arrived in Coreglia I was soaking wet. Marta had brought me a change of clothes so I cleaned myself up and changed. At the same time, Armando and Luana [Libia's daughter and her husband - see part 22] arrived from Piemonte. Everyone was ready to celebrate Christmas Eve.

In our time, we did not exchange gifts at Christmas. This was done during the Epiphany and, as our Lord was given the gifts brought by the three kings, children were the only ones who received presents during this holiday. However, on this occasion Libia and Pietro had gotten gifts for everyone; for Armando, Luana, Ida [Marta and Libia's mother], Marta, and Maurizio. Pietro got something for Libia and Libia also had a present for Pietro. I was somehow forgotten in this exchange of gifts. Not only was I hurt but I was also offended and mortified. I have never forgotten this. I was not assuming anything but only some small item to show that I was part of the family.

At this point I need to go back a bit to the time when Libia and her family moved to Coreglia [see part 19]. They wanted us to live in Ida's house [presumably, the house that had been vacated by Libia's family] since it was now empty. When Libia left she took almost all the furnishings. [What follows is a fairly detailed listing of the possessions my family owned in Italy and what became of them after our departure for America. Although I understand my father's need to explain something that he saw as an injustice committed against our family, I can excuse the reader for being less than captivated by this portion of his account.] She took their new bedroom set, leaving behind only the armoire. The new furniture in the salotto [loosely translated, the parlor or living room] - which she still has today in Coreglia - was also taken. In fact, it would be simpler to list the things that remained in Gromignana; those being, the armoire with a supply of linens (which were to be a substitute for the dowry that Marta had never received from Ida, her mother). Libia removed all her items from the armoire prior to this. They also left behind a bed and a night stand which comprised Ida's old bedroom set. Additionally, there was an old, broken table in the kitchen and a second older table (but a bit more passable) elsewhere in the house. Everything else went to Coreglia and the house remained vacant. Libia also left Lello's [Pietro's father's] china cabinet. Marta and she had agreed that Libia would take the new cabinet and leave this old one behind. The only other item that remained in the house was an arcile [a table on which bread was made].

When we moved in we slowly began to refurnish the house. We had the bed made by Nicodemo [a man from Gromignana] who had also made Libia's bed which she still currently owns. Ours has since been destroyed. Additionally, Nicodemo built a pantry for the kitchen. We bought a sofa and six chairs for the salotto as well as a toilette from Gianni in Piano di Coreglia [literally, "the plane of Coreglia," meaning the valley that lies below the city of Coreglia]. The table for the salotto was built in Coreglia by a man who lived toward the top end of the village on a road that ran below [vague reference, unknown]. It was beautifully polished and made of chestnut tree wood. It seated 12 people. We purchased a brand new radio for which Nicodemo constructed a cabinet. When we departed it was taken by Armando and Luana. We also had a gas oven and another 12 chairs made by Pieretti in Piano di Coreglia. All of these things were left in Gromignana when we came to America.

Along with the items mentioned above, we left behind 11 wine barrels, a full barrel of wine that belonged to Lello, five flagons of oil, 7 wheels of cheese, as well as grain and corn. In addition, I left all my tools and all the housewares from our kitchen; plates, pots, pans, etc. All of this material could have been sold before we departed but Marta wanted to leave it where it was. Early in the morning, on the last day we were in Gromignana, Magri [see part 22] came by with a truck that contained Libia's sofa, her gas stove, and a lamp from her salotto (all items that were old and falling apart) and exchanged them for our sofa (which we had never used), chandelier, and gas stove (both also new). Our home was still furnished when we left but little by little everything disappeared. Although we don't know who took all our possessions, the keys to the house were left with Libia and she was ultimately responsible.

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