From Your Mind's Eye

Wednesday, July 13, 2011

Some Favorite Landscapes

Peace

Misty Morning

Venezia

Another Montreal Autumn

The Count's Courtyard

Portofino

Sunday, July 10, 2011

On July 17th, 1951, a tropical storm crept up the Coast of California from the Gulf of Mexico leaving thick, muggy air in its path. I brushed the damp, sticky hair off my shoulder as I finished the last of my chores. The house was quiet except for the muffled laughter coming from somewhere outside. Glancing out the window, I saw my pregnant Mother and little sister, Tina, laughing and giggling in the wading pool on the lawn outside the kitchen window. Mom waddled back and forth cooling her red, swollen feet. My 5 year old sister splashed and pretended to do the breast stroke in the tiny pool. She was doing just as I had taught her when we played make believe together. Esther Williams would have been proud of the rendition.

I was an overly responsible child for someone so young. I felt very protective of my sister and Mother. It had been a rough year for us all but we were eagerly anticipating the arrival of a new life. Perhaps it would be a boy to carry on the Cevola name. Maybe everything would change and peace would reign in our household. It made me happy to see them so light hearted.

I had spent all of my summer vacation so far trying to relieve my Mother of some of the burdens of household chores. Taking it upon myself, I washed down the kitchen walls that I had heard her say she would like to have cleaned but couldn’t do herself.

Very early the next morning, my Dad woke me to tell me that it was time to take Mom to the hospital. He kissed me softly and told me to go back to sleep and he would call when the baby was born. It was still dark out and I couldn’t get back to sleep. I could hardly wait to hear about the new baby. Hours later, I got my wish.. My brother, Alfonso Mario Cevola, his grandfather’s namesake, was born. Everyone was elated.

A week later, Mom and Dad presented my sister and me with the new bundle of joy. Our family was complete and the family name would survive for another generation.

Al, as we called him, was a lively curious boy. He was a handsome child with beautiful curly hair and enviably long double eyelashes. I lamented the fact that he was so perfect. It really didn’t seem fair. He was a BOY, after all. Because of our almost 13 year age span, I was more of a surrogate Mother than a sister. Over the years, that has changed somewhat. Nevertheless, I still think of Al as my baby brother.

As he grew, Alfonso would take a keen interest in a certain subject or activity and then learn everything he could about it. His interests varied over the years, from baseball in the early years to cameras, cars, travel, wine.... they all became his passion.

The years have had their challenges for Alfonso and the rest of us as well. He has weathered the storms and come out a stronger, wiser man. I am proud of the man he has become. Time has defined him well. As a young man, he honored the world with his only child, Rafael. Two kindred souls sharing Planet Earth.

His focus was on his son, making sure that he knew he was loved and cared for and accepted for himself. There was never any doubt in my mind that Rafael was always Alfonso's top priority.

Sixty years have passed in the flutter of an eyelash. Years of memories, experiences, friendships, joy, laughter, love, heartaches, passion, travel, disappointments, elation, success, fulfillment.

There is so much more to come…..everyday is the beginning of a new adventure. Enjoy your life! It’s yours to live!

Happy 60^th Birthday, Alfonso.

I Love You, Sis

Sunday, June 5, 2011

The Islands are Calling

I like to track weather patterns around the world. On my desktop, I have a long list of places that I follow on a daily basis. The list includes our home in Newport Coast; Lisa and Tabb’s home in Maple Valley, WA; Santa Cruz, Ca where Chanel will soon be living.; Pebble Beach, where we love to stay and relax.; New Castle, PA, where our friends Mike and Anita, our son-in-laws parents live.; Rome, Palermo, Radicondoli and Bucita in Italy, places that I love filled with personal family history. There are others as well. Every morning when I open my desktop, I am transported magically to these places and to the people that I love or who have touched my life there.

Today, the allure of the islands is calling me. My desktop tells me that it is 85 degrees in Honolulu today, sunny and warm. I can smell the Plumeria blossoms and feel the warm blanket of calm that comes over me the minute I step off the plane. I walk, in my mindseye, through the airport, taking in all the familiar sights and sounds. There will be people greeting us with fresh orchid leis. My favorite music will be playing in the background. IZ, the darling of Hawaiian music, greets me with his deep, rich tones, ukulele and slack key guitar. Very soon we will walk across the outdoor bridge that takes us into the main part of the airport. I can hardly wait to feel that soft, sensual air embracing me. Then I will know for sure that I am here. I love this place. It is the only place in the world that makes me feel like I am on vacation. I enjoy traveling and seeing different places around the world, but Hawaii is extra special. It meets all of my needs. The beauty of each island is breathtaking. The people are always warm and friendly. The sound of their language is soothing, a language I would like to learn. The culture is interesting and tragic, as so many cultures are. They are a proud people who share this paradise with us, not always so willingly, but graciously. I fell protective of the islands and their people. I want to honor and respect them as they deserve.

We have come here many times, sometimes just the two of us, sometimes with other loved ones. Some of my happiest memories are here.

Out first visit.

The year we took most of the family with us to Kaua’i

Mom’s 90^th birthday trip with my sister, Tina

Ko O’lina with Lisa and Tabb

Kaua'i with Piper, Pat and Gretchen

No matter when or where or with whom, it never loses it’s allure.

Mahalo, Hawaii

I will return soon.........Aloha

Saturday, May 21, 2011

To 100 ...and Beyond!

On May 24, 1914, Elizabetta Cecelia Bevacqua was born in a little mining town in Tabasco, Colorado, the third child of Attilio and Lucretia Bevacqua.In the early 1900's, her parents had emigrated from Calabria, the most southern tip of Italy. They came separately and years apart. Her father made a fortune in the oil and mining business and sent for his wife and young son. Together, they had four more children. Atillio's luck ran out in Colorado and they lost it all. He gathered his family up and moved to Dallas where he had originally made his mark.

Attilio, Amelia, Josephine and Elissa

Elissa about 5

Elissa, as she came to be known, was remarkable from the start. She was exotically beautiful and full of energy and curiosity. Her life has not always been easy. After the families sojourn back to Dallas, her father left his family when she was five. Her mother struggled to raise her 5 children by herself in a foreign land with limited personal resources. She was a skilled seamstress and found work at Neiman Marcus . it was especially difficult for her because she did not speak English. Some italian friends took her and her children under their wings and hired Lucrezia as a master seamstress in their furrier business. This helped provide for her brood but she could not properly feed and clothe them. She made the heartbreaking decision to place two of the children in the care of St. Joseph's Orphanage in Dallas. Not to be adopted, but to be cared for until she could take care of them herself. This took many years.

Mom and her little sister, Josephine, were placed in the orphanage in the care of the nuns. My grandmother took several streetcars to visit them every week without fail. It must have been so difficult and heart wrenching for all of them. It has left an indelible mark on the fabric of their lives. But they survived .

Mom with her friends at St. Joseph's.

Elissa and Amelia

When she was a young woman, my mother came to California to find her father. He had been living here for many years, had remarried, and had a young son. During this trip, my mother’s destiny was sealed. On a sunny Sunday afternoon she went with a friend to a barbeque and there she met her future. My father fell in love with her at first site. He always said it was her beauty that captured his attention first, but the deal was sealed when she ordered a chocolate shake made with chocolate ice cream. He knew he had met his soul mate. When she left to go back to Dallas, my father took her to the train and ran past her car waving goodbye as far as his legs would take him. Being the romantic, impulsive man that he was, a few weeks later he went to Dallas to surprise her. Her walked into the store where she worked and asked her to go with him for a milkshake . He proposed on the spot.

The rest is history!

On her 90^th birthday, my sister and brother-in-law had a party for Mom with many of her friends and family. My sister and I took her to Hawaii a few days later. She had never had a desire to visit Hawaii but she ended up loving it. We had so much fun and so many happy memories from that trip.

Blowing out 90 candles

Waikiki beauty at 90

On her 96^th birthday, my sister took Mom, her daughter, Ria, and myself to Italy for an adventure. Again, it was a time we all will never forget.

Tina, Mom and Julie in cooking class in Tuscany

Ria, Julie, Tina

Throwing a coin in the Trevi fountain, to return to Rome again!

Mom never ceases to amaze all of us with her energy, her passion for life, her love and loyalty to family and friends. She is engaging and engaged. Everyone that meets her falls in love, just like our Dad over 70 years ago.

Still a beauty at 97

Happy 97^th Birthday, Mom. I Love You and look forward to many years ahead. You are my inspiration and I pray that I enjoy the good health and longevity that you have been blessed with. Keep on being the free spirit that we all want to be!!!!!!!

It's never too late to try out a Harley!

Tuesday, May 17, 2011

My Ancient Companions

Lately, I have been drawn to all manner of things interesting and wild. My morning walks along the shores of Crystal Cove and Pelican Hill give me ample time to ponder the mysteries of nature.

I love the wet fog against my skin and hair and the wild wind that sweeps all my cares to sea. The pelicans fly in formation back and forth over my head.

They seem intuitively to know that I walk peacefully below them. They glide along the cliffs that hug the sea and go from one end to the other back and forth.

They skim across the top of the ocean looking for breakfast and dive down to catch their prize in their pouches.

I have always loved to watch these prehistoric birds. Their lineage dates back 30 to 40 million years. They look ancient in the morning light. One can imagine other prehistoric creatures feeding along the waters edge.

Once a few years ago on the first day of January, my husband and I rode our tandem on these cliffs. The pelicans took flight with us and stayed with us in formation the whole way. It was an ethereal, magical event that seemed to say they too were welcoming in a New Year. I felt so connected with them that day and everyday.

It doesn’t take much to make me realize that there are treasures in every moment of everyday that are there for the taking.