LIKE A BASKET OF BLACKBERRIES

LIKE A BASKET OF BLACKBERRIES "As I tried to gather my few memories, they became more evident and multiplied. I often went back, opening parentheses to add facts and details that had escaped me. The more I wrote and traveled in time, the more the memories surfaced. Images, people, names, conversations, events that I thought were completely lost suddenly appeared, triggering long-dormant emotions. So I imagined myself, with a wicker basket in my arm, searching for blackberries among the brambles along the edge of a forest. The more my eyes adjusted to that small fruit, the more I found and picked. Sometimes, without realizing it, some mouths took a different path, leaving the basket to pass from my lips to my mouth. A bite, a lively and pungent spray invaded my mouth, coloring me with flavors reminiscent of childhood. Finally, satisfied with this journey back in time, I can offer you this basket full of memories that make me the woman I am today." Author Gioia Specchio currently lives in Chiesina Uzzanese (PT), but considers herself a native of La Spezia, having spent her entire childhood and youth in the Ligurian city. She took art courses in Carrara, earned a diploma in theology in Florence, and a kindergarten teacher's degree in Palermo. She taught during her years on mission, creating and directing schools for poor children. She is the leader of "Laughter Yoga." She is the co-author, with her husband and their children, of the book "Our Africa," in the "Segni dei Tempi" series (February 2021), now in its second edition.