The piazza

by Bonnie Brandes
Loud bells announce the arrival of the early evening - it is 5:30. Elderly men line up against the old stone medieval building. As the sun relinquishes its power, people begin to open the worn shutters to welcome the evening breeze. I sit in amazement on how the town piazza fills as a meeting place for people meet or some just to sit. There are no cell phones on tables or distractions of really any kind. People sit alone with their thoughts waiting to welcome a stray friend to conversation. It reminds me when I am alone waiting for someone, I usually am checking my e-mail or surfing the internet on one of many mobile devices. Here they sit in silence at times. It seems special almost hard for me to imagine how to slow my mind to that pace. Time seems unimportant.

Cagli is bustling but peaceful. Large delivery trucks dwarf the small cars that scurry around the square. Same cars repeatedly pass. A banana yellow Vespa whizzes by with a distractingly noisy motor. Cigarette smoke and engine exhaust fill the mountain air. Mimi’s restaurant is the only place open in the square today and every table is full. It is an inviting scene of family and friends spending time together. In the middle of the piazza, pigeons splash in the babbling fountain. The fountain sounds almost like a slowly running faucet. At the base of the fountain, a dark-headed, middle-aged gentleman gently holds a small girl over water, which she welcomes with a quick burst of laughter. Giggles overtake her little body as her mom gazes with a gentle smile from afar.

Two young girls hold hands and walk in a skipping pattern. Italian quickly rolls out of their mouths like a song. It is time for an evening stroll. Young and old walk arm in arm. Couples walk hand in hand. A middle-aged woman pushes an elderly man around in a wheelchair. Another man pushes a woman in a wheelchair up to the table to see her friends. She wears heavy makeup and dazzles in gold and pearls. They share a drink and laughter together. Life is bliss. Smiles fill faces. I sit here in silence contemplating my thoughts. The pressure of time is seems consistent in my life. I live in a world of multi-tasking and overscheduled days. The change is shocking to my soul. I breathe deeply to inhale the peace around me.