Our mother is an island, born of fire
At her feet, ancient children sway back and forth
Polished smooth by the hand of existence
Caught in the tide of the infinite ocean that licks
at the breast that her children once suckled
Longingly, they turn towards the bountiful sea
Enchanted by the promise of glorious fortunes
And stories washed in from faraway shores
They roll, across each other, laughing along the way
For they are a community of brothers and sisters
A community born of volcanic soil, family and toil
They depart, one by one to prosper in foreign lands
But across the Mediterranean winds,
our mother whispers
Awakening a desire to return to the past,
we roll once again
Like a newborn babe bewitched by
the scent of her mother’s milk
We seek the security of her lap
and the comfort of her embrace
Our mother awaits us, hear her, Salina is calling.
Cristina Neri, 2010
This poem was written to express the ever-present longing of Aeolian migrants to return to the islands of their origin, a desire inherited by many of their descendants. Through the exploration of family history and the experience being raised in the Aeolian culture, we are urged to seek others who share our dual identity.
In 2010, Cristina joined the Società Isole Eolie in Melbourne and met Janetta Ziino who exuded this same passion. Cristina also joined several facebook pages created by Australian Aeolians and discovered that this longing to maintain a connection to our family’s heritage was a universal phenomenon yet it was not reflected in the membership of the Società. So there exists a problem. The Aeolian clubs, in Melbourne and Sydney, are dominated by an aging population of post-war migrants, but few of their children were engaging in the clubs’ activities on a regular basis. This poses a great risk, not only to the functionality of the clubs but more importantly, to the living connection between the Australian Aeolians and the Italian Aeolians of the future.
In response to this dilemma, Cristina developed the Eoliano Heritage Study Program in collaboration with Professor Marcello Saija, the director of the Aeolian Museum of Emigration, Salina and with tireless assistance from Janetta. There was an inundation of interest from all around Australia that resulted in a group of enthusiastic students of all ages.
On our way from Catania airport to the port of Milazzo where we took a hydrofoil directly to the island of Salina.
Janetta and Cristina with our accomodation host, Francesco Saija at the program’s launch event at Hotel Sant Marina’s hotel foyer.
In October 2013, through the generosity of many Aeolian families in Salina, the group experienced a program that has enriched our appreciation of our Aeolian heritage that will be cherished for the rest of our lives.
The group arrived at Catania airport on October 4th and promptly bused it to Milazzo to take a connecting hydrofoil to Salina. That same evening the program was inaugurated with a special event held in the foyer of Hotel Santa Marina, our place of residence for the duration of the program.
Some of the participants working on their family history project.
Professor Marcello Saija giving a lecture on the history of Salina as we tour around the island.
Week one of the program included a boat tour of the island of Salina which included a lecture of the island’s history given by Professor Marcello Saija, a cooking demonstration of Aeolian sweets, work on the participant’s family history project under the direction of Cristina, a lecture on Aeolian dialect given by Janetta Ziino and a visit to the Lipari Archaeological Museum of the Aeolian Islands, lunches and dinner in which the group experienced many familiar Aeolian foods and traditions.
Visiting the Lipari Archaeological Museum of the Aeolian Islands.
Having lunch in the piazza of Marina Corta in Lipari.
After a free weekend, week two kicked off with an excursion to Vulcano to scale the volcano’s peak, a boat tour to the islands of Stromboli and Panarea, a visit to the Aeolian Museum of Emigration in Malfa, Salina, excursions to Fenech winery and the Virgona winery to sample the local produce, a visit to the sanctuary of the Madonna del Tezito, many more lunches and dinners, the presentation of the family history project in Malfa and the presentation of the family history project in Santa Marina at the close of the program.
We made it! We climbed to the crater of Vulcano.
At the Aeolian Museum of Emigration in Malfa during the presentation of our family history project.
It is our hope that this program will inspire us all to actively contribute the Aeolian communities both on Australia and the Isole Eolie. In this way, our mutual history along with the genuine love we share for our islands will never die.
