The poem “A Page of Life”, originally written in Italian by my father, Dante Manganelli, deals with the painful experience of leaving one’s homeland and loved ones in a time when no form of technology existed to make separation less doleful.
The poem starts with a long description of the scene of a spring day, the symbol of the dawn of a new and fruitful experience: the opportunity for change and improvement.
After this lengthy description, the poem underscores the heartbreaking experience of lengthy family separation. Family cohesion is a value which Italian immigrants fostered in their “new homeland”.
Finally the last lines sum up two contrasting feelings: eagerness to start a new life and sorrow for what one leaves behind.
The last words of the poem are the most meaningful: the poet defines the USA his “second homeland”. These words express appreciation for two very different cultures and an open-minded attitude to reconcile the best aspects of two worlds and of past and future.
A Page of Life
Spring was in the air
And thousands of thoughts were swarming in my mind
For the sad day of my leaving
Was drawing near.
A restlessness
Drove me out of my house
To admire once again
The beauty of nature.
The March day was exhilarating:
The sun was shining,
Skylarks were flying in the bright sky,
While a few shallows were happily screeching,
perhaps because they had found their lost nests.
Fresh blades of fragrant grass,
and colorful tiny flowers emerged from the damp earth.
Bushes were becoming green
And some violets sprouted among the hawthorns.
Here and there spots of soft snow still covered the ground.
The light rustle of leaves,
The singing of young farmers,
The roaring of the stream,
The sparkling dewdrops,
The dazzling sun setting behind the hill
Altogether made that dying day lovely.
These moments of sublime joy
Were swiftly blurred
By the broken-hearted faces of my loved ones,
In whose eyes an awesome, endless sadness shone.
Eager to join the woman
whom I had bound my life to
and sorrowful for leaving home,
I departed for a very distant land
Which fatally became my second homeland.
