Two Countries, One Life
Her eyes look sad. The expression on her young face caught somewhere between apprehension and fear. A soft light settles on her cheek bones reminiscent of a Renaissance painting. There is no trace of a smile in this black and white photograph I have of my mother. Perhaps she is longing for her native Italy. Perhaps she is contemplating a new life in a foreign land more than four thousand miles away. A child born of one country soon to be adopted by another.
From a small village in Sicily accompanied by her mother, two sisters and one brother, my mother landed on the shores of Ellis Island in New York harbor. Even before her journey began, my mother suffered the loss of her father and soon after her passage to the port of entry, the loss of her younger sister.
But through my mother’s darkest hours and deepest challenges as an Italian immigrant, a daughter, a sister, then eventually wife and mother, gushed a wellspring of character, resilience and tenacity.
Through tragedies she suffered, prejudice she endured and pride in becoming an American citizen, I learned the meaning of compassion, the need for tolerance and love for my country.
My mother’s life ran deep and wide. Spanning two countries embracing two cultures. I am a product of my mother’s journey to America—her sorrows, her joys, her longings, her legacy.
Alice Barbera
