I have been an inhabitant of London for many years now. And I honestly love it!
Having said that, I’m never too far away in my thoughts from my beloved Italy, where I was born and bred.
I catch myself remembering the beautiful sights or the amazing food - in particular, the delicious Italian sweets and Italian treats - when I’m in any of the endless Italian restaurants in London (Italian food in London is certainly everywhere!), or when I’m on the phone, talking to my family or to my mamma!
Something I do all the time…
When you are Italian, your mother is a big thing in your life. And I can’t emphasize how big!
Italian mothers are famous all over the world for being overprotective, very loving (with endless displays of public affection) and quite controlling too.
No wonder, some research I found, claims that one in 3 Italians sees their mother every day.
And 7 out of 10 unmarried Italians over the age of 35 live with their parents.
The average time an Italian spends with their father a day is 15 minutes, while with their mother, it’s hours and hours! That makes Mother’s Day celebrations in Italy something really spectacular and truly heartfelt.
Wow! I told you I couldn’t emphasize how big a thing an Italian mamma is…
Your Italian mamma will want to have a say in how you dress and will complain if your fashion sense is not up to their standard and level.
And by the way, you are never protected against the cold too much...
They’ll want to make sure you have found a good partner in life; who can clean, iron and cook very well, just never quite as well as themselves.
And they’ll put a lot of pressure on your success in life too. From when you’re young with: “- Have you done your homework yet?”, to when you are a grown-up, with your job and career.
Basically, every Italian mamma thinks their child can be the Prime Minister of Italy!
But at the same time, they’ll always feed you the best food you’ll ever eat - and a lot of it, they’ll worry about your health endlessly, and they’ll defend you in public every single time - even when at school and your teachers are complaining you’re not doing all your homework. “- That is because you are giving her too much homework!”
Even if once at home, when no one is watching, they nag you for not doing your homework…
And then there’s Christmas! Now that is a big time for any Italian mamma. It’s their opportunity to prepare the best meal they’ll ever make, a truly luxurious feast, and it’s the chance to compete with all other Italian mammas and make the biggest and greatest Italian feast of all time.
And then finally, when you grow up and leave home, you’ll have to make sure that no matter where you go, you always have a room for her when she comes and visits. Which she will do.
Mine comes for a month at a time.
After all, she’s my Italian mamma.
That’s why sometimes when I catch myself thinking, I understand why I would be so caring, loving and protective of my luxury handmade confectionery Lavolio. It’s because I too have an Italian mamma.
