My Sicilian grandmother was just over five feet tall, like me. She had thick brown hair and olive skin, like me, and she wore a ring on almost every finger.
"Mangia! Buon appetito!" she'd say, setting down an antipasto platter, a plate of warm arancini, or a slice of spaghetti pie made from leftovers.
She could eat a piece of pasta straight from the boiling water to see if it was al dente and she swore that putting lemon juice on a cut would help it heal without a scar.
I remember her when I cook, especially the recipes she and her sisters used in the 1950s.
As the story goes, they made sheets of pasta for Sunday night dinner at the camp, laying out the pieces on kitchen towels spread out on the bed in the back bedroom to dry. They argued over who made the best shape for lemon cookies โ some preferred knots, others twists.
They stirred a big pot of red sauce on the stove (made with tomatoes from the garden), sliced potatoes for the scalloped potato dish, and made their own almond biscotti.
Today, when I bake Aunt Martha's Taralli (black pepper biscuits) or my Grandma's Cinnamon Pinwheels, when I shape orecchiette by hand, it takes me back to a simpler time and place: using minimal, basic ingredients and working with my own hands to create something simple and so rewarding.
There's something powerful about heritage โ that foundation that brings us back to the center of who we are and where we've come from. It helps us rediscover and reconnect with a part of ourselves we may have forgotten, or didn't know was there.
We need this as musicians and teachers, too, don't we? Finding our way back to those early musical influences, the music and musicians that inspired and shaped us, the fundamentals of how we learned and grew into the people we are today.
If you're looking for a creative refresh and an opportunity to get back to the basics of music teaching and learning as you prepare for the year ahead, I'd love to invite you to join me in the 2022 edition of Music Education Basics, a free on-demand, webinar-style workshop.
I created this workshop to help music educators in all types of settings learn how to lead, teach, and inspire others creatively and confidently. Last year, we had music educators from 44 different countries and 40 states join us!
Oh, and if you're looking for a simple handmade pasta recipe to try this month, here's one I can personally recommend.
