The only real voyage of discovery consists not in seeking new landscapes, but in having new eyes.
                        - Marcel Proust

Tuesday, April 8, 2008

Say Hello to Nanna, Nonno.

This morning around  2am, my grandfather passed on to be joined again with his wife of 66 years, my grandmother, who died back in October, and since that day he has been utterly depressed. My other grandfather died about a month ago; that leaves me with 1 grandparent left.

I know you are probably starring at the pic on the left and saying to yourself, "why did he post that?" Well, if there was ever an image that could capture the essence of my grandparents relationship - this is it. I found that in google images and loved it.  Read on and you will understand.

I am happy for him, but sad for my Dad and my uncles. They had a story book marriage, and up until my grandmother passed on, my grandfather would still hold her hand and kiss her; tell her he loved her, how beautiful she is to him, and he would still pinch her ass whenever he thought no one was looking.

My outlook on sex and love has definitely been influenced by them. They taught us to express our love to one another, and my grandfather always said to me, "Marcello, when you find the love of a good women, grab her hand and never let go; make her happy, and in return you will be rewarded with a good life". 

My greatest memory of them is - about 5 years ago I was visiting home from school and decided to pop in on them; it was a tuesday afternoon about 1:30, I walked up to their 3rd floor apartment in Brooklyn and opened the door to see my grandmother in her bra and panties, my grandfather only in his boxers; they were drinking wine and playing strip poker - "Fantastic!!! God Bless!!" I said. 

My grandfather loved her so much and did everything under the sun to make her happy. 

I will miss you nonno, kiss nanna for me and give my other grandfather, "nonno" a hug also....

Ciao,
Marcello

15 comments:

Neeraja said...

This is one of the most heartfelt posts I have read in quite some time...

I'm very sorry for the loss of your Grandfather.

~N

Blissfully Wed said...

Wonderful post. My thoughts are with you, and I hope to always take your grandfather's advice to heart.

Lolita said...

What great role models! I am sorry about your loss.

Ms. Lily said...

Marcello,

So sorry for your loss. Keep those wonderful memories in your heart and they will always be close to you.

My grandparents are 88 and 89 years old and have been married for 65 years. They amaze me with the way they are still so in love.

I hope that my husband and myself have the same effect on our grandchildren that my grandparents have had on us.

Love your blog!

Ms. Lily

MarcelloNYC said...

Neeraja - Thank you

Blissfully Wed -Thank you and I do.

Lolita - They were, and thank you.

Ms. Lily - That is the exact age of my grandparents 88/89 and 66yrs married. I am sure you will be great role models for them.

Thursday's Child said...

What a sweet and heartfelt tribute! You must have really loved him. :)

Raven in NYC (aka Mark) said...

So beautiful. Sounds like it would have been great to meet your grandparents. And it sounds like you inherited a great deal of their "spirit." Sounds like heaven has got a very hot couple they need to look out for.

curiousgirl said...

i found that picture charming and it brought a smile to my face...that deep and lasting affair with a person's soul is the ultimate attanment one can hope for in a relationship...you have had a very blessed life, marcello and i think that your grandparents relationship is a testament to that...

cg

Curvaceous Dee said...

*sniffles* Marcello, that was a beautiful post, and very heartfelt. Thank you for sharing a part of your life with us.

I, too, now have only one grandparent left. Here's hoping she's around for quite some time!

*big hugs*
Dee

MarcelloNYC said...

thursday's child - Thank you, I did love him a lot - I will miss playing bocce with him the most.

raven - I love that comment. Today when my dad and uncles were crying, I said, "he is in heaven grabbing her ass right now, and kissing her hand - they are definitely heating it up"

curious girl - thank you. They truly merged as one, and it is amazing how they kept that newlywed feeling up until today.

curvaceous dee - thank you - it is definitely something I wanted to share. Even though it is sad, there is a sexiness to it because of how they lived their lives; they were sex positive outlook with out even knowing it.

I Smile 2 Much said...

awwwwww........ i luv'd reading what u wrote about your grandparents. ((hugs)) 2 u. i'm glad though that they had such an incredibly loving influence on you; thats awesome. and when u say what your grandfather told u? wow. that is sooooo cool. its wonderful u have so many good and loving and fun memories to hold onto and cherish. ((more hugs 2 u!!))

Anndi said...

Your Nono gave you wonderful advice... I'm glad you experienced the priviledge of witnessing such a great love.

Real Live Lesbian said...

What a glorious story! I loved every word of it! Well told!

BTExpress said...

I'm so sorry for your loss, but also it's nice that your grand parents are together again. I love the picture you chose, because it shows us what a fun, loving couple they were and are once again. Ciao my friend.

hello haha narf said...

i am terribly sorry for your loss.

that was a magnificent post. it is wonderful to hear / read of such love. thanks for sharing.

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