Fish Soup-An Oral History Project at Mount Holyoke College

This past weekend, I had the opportunity to participate in an oral history project at my alma mater, Mount Holyoke College.  The project has been in existence since 2009 and it very similar to Story Corps, another oral history project that has been recording the stories of Americans since 2003.  Story Corps recordings can be heard every week on National Public Radio.  I went to New York in January 2010 to record the story of my genealogy journey for Story Corps.

The Fish Soup project at my college was launched in an effort to explore the culture of Mount Holyoke College through oral history.  It is also an opportunity for students to develop cross-cultural awareness.

"One of the goals of the Fish Soup project is to encourage students to reflect on the meaning of “culture” and then to explore the cultures of the Mount Holyoke College community through recording and sharing stories about their lives at and before MHC. By participating in the project both as interviewers and interviewees, students can grow in their cross-cultural understanding and self-awareness. (Fish Soup, Mount Holyoke College)

I decided to share one of my blog posts from La Mia Famiglia for my story.  When I finished my recording, they gave me a copy of the story and I uploaded it here as a podcast for you all to hear.  I have not edited anything, so there are a few sounds in the background that might catch your attention.  Enjoy the podcast and ignore the noises!

Francesco Persano, My Grandfather's Travel Companion

For the longest time, I have wanted to share this photo of "La Bretagne", the ship that my grandfather took when he came to this country for the first time in 1909. Today seems like the appropriate day because something amazing happened!

Today I received an email from a man named Dave whose grandfather also came from Curinga. Dave happened to find this blog because he was visiting my other gluten-free blog! It turns out, our grandfathers were on the same ship. As I read through Dave's letter and I came upon his grandfather's name, I couldn't believe it. I recognized the name. It was Francesco Persano. I knew the name very well because I had studied the ship manifest and all my grandfather's travel companions. I know the names as if they were characters of my favorite novel. If you read one of my earlier posts , A Letter to Curinga, you will find the list of men from Curinga who traveled with my grandfather, Carmelo Orlando. Francesco Persano is the name right above my nonno's on the ship manifest.

This development in my research is yet another example of the fruits of my hard work. My patience has been tested and I have encountered my fair share of dead ends along the way. Nonetheless, I have stayed with this project because I can't imagine abandoning it. It's a part of me now.

Stay tuned in the coming weeks for more on this new development as Dave and I connect by phone to exchange stories about our grandfathers.

Saying Goodbye to Maria Orlando: 1924-2009

Maria and Jennifer holding a picture of Maria's cousins, October 2009

21-11-2009

Jennifer,

Mi dispiace dirti che Maria Orlando e morta oggi presso l'ospedale di Lamezia Terme. I funerali si faranno lunedi alle 13,30.
Claudio

November 21, 2009

Jennifer,
I am sorry to tell you that Maria Orlando died today at the Lamezia Terme hospital. The funeral will be on Monday at 1:30pm.
Claudio

I woke up this morning and stumbled to the kitchen to prepare my morning coffee. On the way to the kitchen, I grabbed my Blackberry and opened it up to that message. I stopped in my tracks. Maria died only one month after my departure from Italy.

It turns out that Maria was hospitalized two weeks ago for renal failure and an enlarged heart. She looked fine when I saw her at the rest home. She was slow and needed a walker to get around, but there was no indication that she was about to die. I am still stunned by the news. Stunned by the fact that I made it in time to meet my cousin. Only two weeks after my departure she would fall ill and start her journey over to the other side, that which awaits us all.

I feel a mix of sorrow and gratitude. I am sad because I have lost the most precious part of my trip to Curinga: Maria Orlando. At the same time, I feel grateful because I was given the opportunity to find her and meet her before she passed on. If you have followed my journey closely, you know that my meeting Maria was a major milestone in tracing my roots back to Curinga. Maria was the treasure, the last survivor of my grandfather’s family tree, and she was a surprise to top it all off. I never knew Maria existed because vital records for her mother did not indicate that her mom had given birth to Maria. Rosa was single, “nubile” as her death certificate read.

In the days since I returned from Curinga to my home in the United States, I have proudly showed everyone my picture of Maria. Each time I have an opportunity to tell my story about this journey, I pull out my Blackberry and I fondly show my friends the picture of Maria and me holding a picture of her first cousins, Bruno, Lucy, and Angela. She had not known about her first cousins, since they grew up in the United States and she stayed in Curinga her entire life. Nonetheless, I felt it was important for her to be aware of them, not only because they were all so close in age, but also because my mom was her first cousin.

When Sister Anna Lisa took that picture of us in the rest home during my second visit, I was overcome with a feeling of completeness. Despite the fact that my mother and her siblings had passed on and we only held a picture of them in our hands, our connection at that moment was the reunion of two branches in our family tree. Two branches that had been separated in 1909 by an ocean, a different language, a new life in Pennsylvania, and the early death of my grandfather in 1937. 100 years later, I would make my way to back to my grandfather’s town to discover Maria and introduce her to the rest of her family. We had come full circle together. We found each other and we mended the tree.

For me, the timing of these events is an affirmation that our actions and decisions are not necessarily a mere coincidence. There is a greater force at work here, call it/he/she what you would like. The fact that I would arrive to Curinga to meet Maria for the first time only a month and half before her demise, the fact that I didn’t wait until Christmas like I had originally planned, the fact that Maria had dreamt she would have a visitor from the United States two days before my arrival to the rest home...This experience has allowed me see God’s work in all its beauty. I am humbled and grateful to have been given this gift of Maria Orlando, as brief as our time was together.

Maria Orlando, September 14, 1924 – November 21, 2009

Lettera Aperta a Jennifer

Jennifer at her grandfather's house in Curinga




About a year before I arrived to Curinga, I sent an email to the webmaster for the Curinga Insieme website. I saw that they invited readers to send publications and letters, so I decided to take a chance and send my letter to be published on their website. The webmaster, Cesare Cesareo, was nice enough to publish my short note and we continued to exchange emails about my interest in Curinga.

During my last weekend in Curinga, I had the pleasure of visiting Cesare's home where I met his wife and adorable cat, Kalos. We talked about my genealogy research, my impressions of Curinga, and my desire to return to Calabria to experience more of Curinga and the surrounding areas.

Cesare has written a very moving letter about my desire to turn back the clock, or perhaps stop it as he says, so that I could find my roots and pay homage to my ancestors who once resided in this beautiful town on a hilltop overlooking the sea.

I plan to translate this letter to English, but for the moment, I have it here as Cesare has written it Italian.

Thank you, Cesare. Thank you for your genuine interest in my journey back to my roots, back to Curinga.

"Jennifer è una persona che è nata, vive e lavora in un piccolo stato del grande continenteamericano, nulla di eccezionale o di trascendentale Come lei, milioni, miliardi di individui vivonolavorano, amano, socializzano, ma Jennifer forse è un po’ speciale.

Un po’ speciale forse perché immersa nel nostro caotico mondo ritmato da un tempo che sembrasempre più veloce, ha sentito la necessità di fermarsi un attimo, di rallentare il tempo, di fermarlo,anzi.. ritornare indietro in un passato non vissuto ma vagheggiato ed amato.

In un mondo che corre solo verso il futuro il suo è stato un gesto controcorrente, un atto di fedenella ricerca di cose mai viste e lontane, che sembrano senza tempo, senza forma, immerse in unlimbo nebbioso che solo la volontà e la determinazione riescono a chiarificare.

Jennifer ha voluto rivivere, anzi vivere, un esperienza mai vissuta, che fermentava nel suo cuore enei suoi più reconditi pensieri. Un salto nel grembo di quella madre terra che ha visto nascere i suoiantenati. Curinga, un punto insignificante di questo nostro mondo ,Curinga, un nome come tantialtri, Curinga, però, punto di arrivo di un percorso d’amore e di ricerca interiore.

Ed eccola in questo lembo di terra tra mare cielo, tra ulivi secolari e fertile pianura, tra storia eleggenda , tra fatica di restare e forza per andarsene, Curinga piccolo per tanti, ma grande per chi dalontano lo vede come punto fermo inscindibile dal proprio essere.

Il passeggiare tra le strade percorse dai propri cari, il vicolo, la casa, la ruga, il contatto umano, ilcalore del camino, il baccalà fritto, i fagioli con l’olio nuovo, i sorrisi, i racconti, il dialetto, lasperanza e, poi… Maria… trovata, ritrovata …contatto vero con il mondo fino ad allora immaginatoe sognato.

Grazie Jennifer, per averci ricordato le tante persone le centinaia di famiglie che col pianto nel cuore hanno dovuto lasciare la loro terra, ma vivendo in una terra lontana hanno mantenuto e vissuto quanto di positivo e di bello era rimasto nei loro cuori."

Cesare Natale Cesareo

Letter at the Curinga Insieme website

Curinga, Medicine for My Soul

Curinga at sunset, with a view of the Eolie islands and Stromboli (Volcano)

Tonight I wrote to a dear friend of mine who lives in Spain. I tried to describe this trip and what it is doing for my general wellbeing. I know that many people will ask me when I return, what did I see? Where did I go? When I tell them I went to Curinga and I spent 10 days in a town without seeing other cities or areas of Calabria, they will wonder what I could have done in the same place for 12 days.

It's very possible that I will see some other towns in the area, but frankly, I don't know if I need to see more during this trip. Vacation is about rest. It's about rejuvenation and reflection. To achieve what I am looking for, I don't need to go very far. I have found it right here in Curinga.

Curinga is medicine for my soul.

This is Curinga, the Town of My Nonno

This is Curinga, the town where my grandfather was born. God willing, soon my feet will walk through these streets.

My Family Tree Just Grew Again!

Who would have ever thought I could tell you the name, profession, and year of birth for my great, great maternal grandfather? I certainly did not. When I started this journey back in 2006, I set out to identify my maternal grandfather and that was pretty much the extent of my hopes and wishes. It’s taken me two years to uncover Carmelo’s identity and origin, but persistence has paid off. My genealogy research continues to reward me beyond what I ever expected.

Patience has never been a virtue of mine. Typically I want my requests fulfilled yesterday. That’s right, yesterday. With such a small threshold for waiting, I have done pretty well on this ancestral journey.

Yes, I admit, recently there are days when I come racing home after work to see if there is mail from USCIS. Afterall, it has been three months since I requested information about my grandfather. Somehow though, I have been taking the wait time in stride. I figure that in due time, the information about Carmelo citizenship status will be revealed. I have begun to see this waiting game as a great exercise that will bring me to a new understanding about myself and my family history.

In the interim, just when I think I am going to explode from waiting for news from Italy or some government office in this country, I receive treasures that I never asked for. These treasures enrich the Orlando tapestry and given it more dimension.

One of these treasures is the Orlando family I contacted to help me research my grandfather’s identity. They could have easily hung up the phone that day I mustered up the courage to call all the Orlando numbers from the phone book in the town of Curinga. They didn’t hang up the phone though. E. did the research for me, updating me along the way, and always reassuring me not to worry. I look forward to meeting her in October. I feel such gratitude towards her. It will be a special moment when I finally come face to face with Eleonora.

Another treasure is something Eleonora sent me yesterday. She was able to find out more information about my grandfather’s family. She said I was extremely fortunate that they found the documents they did because many of the civil records for Curinga had been lost or burnt during a widespread uprising that took place around 1948. In fact, she said she found less information about her own family than she did about my grandfather’s lineage.

So, I introduce you to yet another Orlando family member: Santo Orlando, my great great grandfather born circa 1802. The document found in the town hall of Curinga also included some priceless information about my great great grandfather’s profession. I leave you with this little You Tube video to celebrate Santo’s craft. Enjoy…

Curinga Insieme

I found a really neat website about Curinga this week. It's called Curinga Insieme. What I love most about the site is the photo album. I have been really wanting to find pictures of Curinga. This website has a nice collection.

The website also has a section where readers can send letters. I am happy to say they published my letter. I will now be known throughout all of Curinga! Not only do they know me in the town hall, they know me on Facebook, and the readers know me at Curinga Insieme! By the time I arrive, they will hold a special parade for my arrival!

Here is the letter.