{"id":233972,"date":"2024-07-07T16:46:08","date_gmt":"2024-07-07T16:46:08","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/lultima-valigia-di-cartone\/"},"modified":"2024-07-09T06:38:13","modified_gmt":"2024-07-09T06:38:13","slug":"the-last-cardboard-suitcase","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/the-last-cardboard-suitcase\/","title":{"rendered":"The last cardboard suitcase"},"content":{"rendered":"

L’ultima valigia di cartone
\n<\/span><\/h1>\n

A pensare che sono nata
\ndove c\u2019\u00e8 il sole,
\nsono io
\nl\u2019ultima valigia di cartone.
\nMi ritrovo sballottata
\nqui e l\u00e0
\ne non capisco le parole
\ndi questa nuova citt\u00e0.
\nParlano l\u2019inglese,
\nparlano il tedesco,
\nparlano il francese e l\u2019italiano,
\nun tempo sentivo parlare
\nsolo il siciliano.
\nCosa \u00e8 rimasto
\ndella mia gente?
\nLa nuova generazione
\nmi guarda
\nnon sa i sacrifici e le lacrime amare
\ndi chi veniva a cercare
\nin terra straniera la fortuna.
\nSolo dispiaceri, umiliazione,
\ne la mia valigia di cartone.
\nAh! se potessi parlare racconterei
\ndi quando la sera,
\nfradici ritornavano a casa infreddoliti
\ne l\u2019indomani con la febbre
\ntornavano a guadagnarci
\nquei quattro franchi
\nper la famiglia
\ne quei poveri parenti.
\nSi accontentavano di mangiare
\ndue uova al tegamino
\ncon due patate, e mezzo chilo di pane.
\nRicordo quando di nascosto piangevano,
\nscontenti pensando ai lontani figli amici, e parenti.
\nAh! quante cose ancora
\npotrei raccontare
\nsoprusi e prepotenze,
\nper un pezzo di pane.
\nErano i tempi dei nonni muratori,
\noggi i nipoti qui, fanno i professori.
\nAh! quante cose ha subito
\nla mia gente.
\nMa che volete, carissimi amici,
\nA casa mia mi hanno insegnato che si ascolta , si tace,
\ne non si racconta niente.<\/p>\n

Zaira Sellerio<\/span><\/p>\n

The last cardboard suitcase<\/span><\/h1>\n

To think that I was born
\nWhere the sun is,
\nam I
\nthe last cardboard suitcase.
\nI find myself tossed
\nHere and there
\nAnd I don’t understand the words
\nOf this new city.
\nThey speak English,
\nthey speak German,
\nthey speak French and Italian,
\nI used to hear people speak
\nonly Sicilian.
\nWhat is left
\nof my people?
\nThe new generation
\nlooks at me
\ndoes not know the sacrifices and the bitter tears
\nOf those who came to seek
\nIn foreign lands for fortune.
\nOnly sorrow, humiliation,
\nAnd my cardboard suitcase.
\nAh! if I could speak I would tell
\nOf when in the evening,
\ndrenched they would return home cold
\nAnd the next day with fever
\nThey would return to earn
\nthose four francs
\nfor the family
\nand those poor relatives.
\nThey were content to eat
\ntwo fried eggs
\nwith two potatoes, and half a kilo of bread.
\nI remember when they secretly cried,
\ndisgruntled thinking of the distant children friends, and relatives.
\nAh! how many more things
\nI could tell
\nInjustices and bullying,
\nfor a piece of bread.
\nThose were the days of grandparents masons,
\ntoday the grandchildren here, are professors.
\nAh! how many things have suffered
\nmy people.
\nBut what do you want, dear friends,
\nIn my house I was taught that one listens , one keeps silent,
\nAnd one tells nothing.<\/p>\n

Zaira Sellerio<\/p>\n

 <\/p>\n

\"An<\/a>
An old suitcase Image by congerdesign from Pixabay<\/span><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n

Recension<\/span><\/h2>\n

This poem entitled “L’ultima valigia di cartone<\/em>” – The Last Cardboard Suitcase deals with the theme of emigration and the experience of migrants in foreign lands with deep nostalgia and bitterness. Written with direct empathy and without adornment, the author describes the cardboard suitcase as a symbol of what has been left behind: the homeland, language, traditions, but also the hardships and suffering endured by migrants.<\/span><\/p>\n

The text expresses a feeling of disorientation and isolation in the new linguistic and cultural reality of the foreign city, where the suitcase, a silent witness of stories and sacrifices, finds itself to be the only connection to the past. The author reflects on the loss of cultural and linguistic identity, comparing the vitality of the Sicilian dialect with the fragmentation and alienation of the diaspora.<\/span><\/p>\n

The use of the cardboard suitcase as a metaphor is particularly evocative, as it represents not only the physical transportation of material things, but also of memories and deep emotional experiences. Later generations, depicted as estranged and distant from the sufferings and struggles of their predecessors, are observed with a mixture of regret and understanding.<\/span><\/p>\n

The poem also focuses on the harsh daily realities of migrants: the long days of hard work, the spartan living conditions, the poignant nostalgia for the homeland and loved ones left behind. Despite everything, a sense of resilience and dignity emerges among those who, despite the disappointments and humiliations in the search for a better life, have continued to fight for the sake of their families and communities.<\/span><\/p>\n

In sum, “The Last Cardboard Suitcase” is a poem that celebrates the often silent and forgotten stories of those who have sought a better life elsewhere, carrying only a cardboard suitcase laden with memories and shattered hopes. It is a work that invites reflection on migration, cultural identity and the challenges of integration in new contexts, leaving an indelible imprint in the hearts and minds of readers.<\/span><\/p>\n

“Il coraggio \u00e8 femmina” by Zaira Sellerio to be released in September<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/p>\n

Some awards for her work<\/span><\/h2>\n

\u2022 Premio nazionale di poesia \u201cArturo Massimi\u201d Ottobre 1999, Mentana Roma;<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Targa per il premio di narrativa; concorso internazionale \u201cPelosa\u201d Messina Novembre 2000<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Targa di poesia Ottobre 2000 della Provincia di Roma \u2022 Concorso internazionale \u201cAntonio de Curtis\u201d Roma<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Premio Poeti e societ\u00e0 delegazione della Svizzera Tedesca (concorso internazionale, menzione di merito)<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Il premio di poesia inedita, quinta edizione premio \/ l\u2019attualit\u00e0 \u2013 Bartolucci diploma di finalista, 27 ottobre 2001<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Concorso internazionale artistico-letterario, Antonio de Curtis \u201cTot\u00f2\u201d, Roma 22 ottobre 2002<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 ALIAS (Accademia Letteratura Italo Australia Scrittori, con la collaborazione c.r.a.s.e.s di Palermo, Concorso Letterario Internazionale III Premio ex aequo di poesia, 10 ottobre 2003<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 I PREMIO DI POESIA galleria \u201cIl salotto dell\u2019arte ROMA 22 Marzo 2009<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 PREMIO UNA VITA PER LA CULTURA \u201cGalleria Salotto dell\u2019arte ROMA\u201d Aprile 2012<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Premio Internazionale di Poesia Dialettale \u201cRadici Poetiche\u201d<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Finalista nella rassegna di testi d\u2019antologia, dedicata a Massimo Troisi, giugno 2015.<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 X. Premio Internazionale Navarro \u201cNarrativa Edita\u201d,\u00a0 Sambuca di Sicilia \u2013 Borgo dei Borghi maggio 2018.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Premio Letterario Internazionale sezione Europa, Lugano (Svizzera), Maggio 2014.
\n<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022 Premio UNA VITA PER LA CULTURA 2009, Roma, Maggio 2009<\/span><\/p>\n

\u2022\u00a0Premio Internazionale Donne D\u2019Amore 2023- 1 . premio sezione poesia Roma, maggio 2023<\/span><\/p>\n

Il coraggio \u00e8 femmina<\/span><\/a><\/h2>\n

The print book Il coraggio \u00e8 femmina<\/a> can be pre-ordered with an exclusive dedication by the author.
\nTo place your order, send an e-mail with your details to<\/strong> zairasellerio@sunrise.ch<\/strong><\/a><\/span><\/h3>\n

 <\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"

This poem entitled “L’ultima valigia di cartone” – The Last Cardboard Suitcase deals with the theme of emigration and the experience of migrants in foreign lands with deep nostalgia and bitterness. Written with direct empathy and without adornment, the author describes the cardboard suitcase as a symbol of what has been left behind: the homeland, language, traditions, but also the hardships and suffering endured by migrants.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":16,"featured_media":233951,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[260,2103,210,2463],"tags":[471,1792,2283,1850,2015,2471],"class_list":["post-233972","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-highlights","category-italian-culture","category-magazine","category-zairas-corner","tag-emigration-en","tag-history","tag-italian-language","tag-italians-abroad","tag-life-quality","tag-literary-work"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233972","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/16"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=233972"}],"version-history":[{"count":3,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233972\/revisions"}],"predecessor-version":[{"id":233973,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/233972\/revisions\/233973"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/233951"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=233972"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=233972"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/swissfederalism.ch\/en\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=233972"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}