The Papal Funeral

I have been feeling a little under the weather today. Maybe it is the cold rainy weather or the sadness of this day. Maybe both.

I am going to be cheeky and steal my friend Joanne's blog entry about the Pope.

Papal funeral

The funeral of Pope John Paul II is being held right now in the Vatican.


It is not business as usual today in Italy - many of the shops have decided to close and lower their shutters in sign of mourning.


I was in the gym when the funeral started. We switched off the music and paused in our aerobics for a minute of hot and sweaty silence.


I have had the opportunity to see Pope John Paul II twice since I have been living in Italy. The first time we "ran into him" quite by accident - we were traveling in Tuscany with my mother in the spring of 1993. After a cappuccino in Buonconvento and a visit to the abbey of Monte Oliveto Maggiore - entirely unaware of the importance these places were later to assume in our lives - we decided to take Mum to Arezzo to see Piero della Francesca's frescos. Arriving in Arezzo, we found it particularly difficult to locate a parking spot. After nursing Sara, then only a few months old, in the Roman amphitheatre, we proceeded up the hill into the town and found and that all the local people had arranged yellow and white draperies hanging over their windowsills and balconies. When we got to the top of the hill we joined the people who had gathered outside the Duomo just in time to catch a glimpse of the Pope coming out of the cathedral. He paused to offer the crowd his blessing and I held Sara up over my head to receive it. Thus she had the good fortune to be blessed by the Pope himself at the tender age of only three months.


In September of 1998 Pope John Paul II came to Chiavari. It was very exciting. The town was in an uproar and crowds of people were converging here from all over Liguria. At midday we heard his helicopter pass overhead on its way to land in the football field where Davide now plays, and soon the Pope was cruising along Corso Dante in his Popemobile. We had a first-class view from Nonna and Nonno's balcony (our own balcony is around the back of our building and does not overlook the street). Thus Davide also had an opportunity to see the Pope within the first few months of his life - though he was old enough by then to hold a yellow and white flag and wave it with enthusiasm!






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You can visit her site and discover more about our lives in Chiavari. At the right you will find the link. There is a gold star to anyone who can spot the photo of Davide at my house!