Il cucchiaio di legno

La coltre di nebbia sul bosco calava,
e attutiva quel dire di un ramoscello
all’albero nocchiuto.

“Padre, chi sono quegli uomini
che avanzano con l’ascia in mano?”
“Figlio mio, sono i boscaioli,
sono venuti qui
per abbatterci al suolo.”
“Padre, allora moriremo?”
“No, figliolo, un’anima l’abbiamo anche noi,
perciò vivremo sempre.
Non aver paura! Vedrai, che staremo insieme con un po’ di fortuna.”

I boscaioli segarono l’albero,
e il ramoscello finì in falegnameria.
Fu piallato e raffinato
fino a divenire un cucchiaio.

Nel suo nuovo destino
fu riposto in cucina,
nel cassetto di un tavolo
novello anch’esso.

“Figliolo, figliolo, ti ho ritrovato! Ci sei!”
“Padre, sei tu?
Sto qui, chiuso nel cassetto,
sono diventato un cucchiaio.”
“Sapessi quanto ho atteso questo momento!
Io sono diventato un tavolo.”
“Allora staremo di nuovo insieme?”
“Sì, figliolo, ogni giorno potrò rivederti.”

Ma il giorno seguente
la padroncina di casa fece una delle sue marachelle,
e la madre, in preda alla rabbia,
la colpì col cucchiaio di legno.

Tac, tac…
Inutili furono le mie proteste,
sentivo dolore…
E più d’un colpo batteva, sentii un dolore:
Tac, tac… trac!

Non potei più vedere mio padre.
Spezzato in due,
lei mi buttò nella spazzatura.

Zaira Sellerio

The wooden spoon

The blanket of fog over the forest descended,
and muffled that saying of a twig
to the bare tree.

‘Father, who are those men
who advance with axe in hand?’
‘My son, it is the woodcutters,
they have come here
to cut us down to the ground.’
‘Father, shall we die then?’
‘No, my son, we also have a soul,
therefore we shall always live.
Do not be afraid! You will see, that we will be together with a little luck.’

The woodcutters sawed down the tree,
and the twig ended up in the carpenter’s workshop.
It was planed and refined
until it became a spoon.

In its new fate
it was placed in the kitchen,
in the drawer of a table
also new.

‘Son, son, I have found you! You are there!’
‘Father, is that you?
I am here, locked in the drawer,
I have become a spoon.’
‘If you knew how long I have waited for this moment!
I have become a table.’
‘Then shall we be together again?’
‘Yes, son, every day I will be able to see you again.’

But the next day
the landlady pulled one of her shenanigans,
and the mother, in a rage,
struck her with a wooden spoon.

Tac, tac…
My protests were useless,
I felt pain…
And more than one blow beat, I felt pain:
Tac, tac… trac!

I could no longer see my father.
Broken in two,
she threw me in the rubbish.

Zaira Sellerio

Review

‘The Wooden Spoon’ is an intense and symbolic poem that transforms a simple everyday object into a poignant narrative about transformation, destiny and the unbreakable bond between father and son.

Using evocative language and an almost fairy-tale structure, the author gives voice to the felled trees, making them witnesses and protagonists of a life cycle that leads them from living beings in the forest to domestic objects. The initial dialogue between the tree and the twig is a touching reflection of fragility in the face of change, but also of the hope of remaining united despite everything.

The final twist, in which the spoon is broken and thrown away, abruptly breaks the illusion of a new equilibrium, adding a note of melancholy and cruel irony to the tale. Father and son had found each other again, but fate separates them once more, permanently.

The poem stands out for its expressive simplicity and its ability to convey deep emotions through powerful imagery and a gentle rhythm. The contrast between the sweetness of the meeting and the brutality of the final separation amplifies the emotional impact on the reader.

A work that invites reflection on the fragility of life, the transformation of things and the beauty of bonds that resist time

La vittoria dell’aglio e della cipolla – The garlic and onion victory

Some recognitions for her works

• National Poetry Award “Arturo Massimi” in October 1999 in Mentana – Rome.
• Plaque for the Narrative Award at the International Competition “Pelosa” in Messina, November 2000.
• Poetry Plaque in October 2000 awarded by the Province of Rome.
• International Competition “Antonio de Curtis” in Rome.
• Poets and Society Award, Swiss German Delegation (international competition, honorable mention).
• Unpublished Poetry Award, 5th Edition of the “Premio/l’attualità – Bartolucci”, finalist diploma, October 27, 2001.
• International Artistic-Literary Competition, Antonio de Curtis “Totò”, Rome, October 22, 2002.
• ALIAS (Academy of Italian-Australian Literature and Writers, in collaboration with C.R.A.S.E.S. in Palermo).
• International Literary Competition, 3rd Prize ex aequo for Poetry, October 10, 2003.
• First Poetry Prize at the Gallery “Il Salotto dell’Arte”, Rome, March 22, 2009.
• “Premio Una Vita per la Cultura”, Galleria Salotto dell’Arte, Rome.
• 2014 – IV International Literary Award Europe for the novel (Dal Profondo del Cuore) – May 11, 2014, Lugano.
• II Navarro Prize for the novel (Dal Profondo del Cuore), May 13, 2018, in Sambuca di Sicilia, Sicily.
• Special Award “Lilly Broggi – La Pergola Arte” for the novel (Dal Profondo del Cuore), Florence, October 27, 2018.
• V Prize for the novel (Dal Profondo del Cuore) at Versilia Club’s “Massa Città Fiabesca di Mare e di Marmo”, September 28, 2019.
• 1st International Prize dedicated to the feminine universe “Donne d’Amore” V. Barrett, Poetry Section (Sui Gradini di Piazza di Spagna).
• 1st Prize for the Literature – Novel category for the work (Il Coraggio è Femmina), Rome, May 22, 2023.
• Poetry Award “Ai Tuoi Piedi” in the city of Mercogliano (AV) for the poem (E là incontrai mia Madre), September 8, 2024.