Every year like clockwork at the 16th of July the sleep little town of Lowellville, OH comes to life with the whirl of kiddie rides, screams of aggressive mora players, clanks of bocce balls, and Italian music. The sausage and cavatelli could be smelled in the air from blocks away. Just like everything else this year though the festival looks a little different. There are no vendors.... no crowds gathered in the street.... no games... no children running to capture the elusive flags that can be traded at city hall.... no bocce balls on the court and no numbers being shouted in Italian....
In the darkness hidden from public view we still gather with the band playing our song... a culture and heritage that cannot be set aside regardless of the world around it. Tradition must go on! A private viewing of a select handful of us still gather to prepare the Baby Doll. We don our masks and still cheer on... we have even more to rejoice in the start of this new year for us... we have endured and survived even more than in past years on this night.
In some ways the year's festa was the best ever. It reminded us why we actually have this tradition and connected us more to our roots than the annual hustle and bustle had done in years. We were connected again, we were apart of what I ancestors had passed on to us. Despite the lack of carnival environment, the music still cues up and there is more childlike excitement in the air than any year before.... The doll dances and the fireworks shoot into the air and every Calabrian in the crowd is shaking their fist at rough year that has just ended!! Buona Festa..... until next year!
