Here in Italy, the 19th of March is La Festa del Papà (Father’s day).

Here’s a beautiful poem written by Camillo Sbarbaro (1888 – 1967) and published in 1914 in the collection Pianissimo. The poem takes its title from the first line: Padre, se anche tu non fossi il mio padre (Father, even if you weren’t my father). In these verses Camillo Sbarbaro recalls two childhood memories which reveal his father’s gentle, child-like nature.

Carlo Levi: Ritratto del padre Ercole, 1923

Here’s the poem with our translation into English:

Padre, se anche tu non fossi il mio
padre, se anche fossi a me un estraneo,
per te stesso, egualmente t’amerei.
Ché mi ricordo d’un mattin d’inverno
che la prima viola sull’opposto
muro scopristi dalla tua finestra
e ce ne desti la novella allegro.
Poi la scala di legno tolta in spalla
di casa uscisti e l’appoggiasti al muro.
Noi piccoli stavamo alla finestra.

Father, even if you weren’t my
father, even if you were a stranger to me,
I’d love you just the same for who you are.
Because I remember a winter morning
when from your window you discovered
the first violet on the wall opposite
and you merrily told us the news.
Then, wooden ladder hoisted upon your shoulder,
you went out and propped it against the wall.
We little ones stood at the window.

E di quell’altra volta mi ricordo
che la sorella mia piccola ancora
per la casa inseguivi minacciando
(la caparbia avea fatto non so che).
Ma raggiuntala che strillava forte
dalla paura, ti mancava il cuore:
ché avevi visto te inseguir la tua
piccola figlia e, tutta spaventata,
tu vacillante l’attiravi al petto
e con carezze dentro le tue braccia
avviluppavi come per difenderla
da quel cattivo ch’era il tu di prima.

And I remember that other time
when my sister was still little
you chased her around the house, threatening her
(that stubborn one had done I don’t know what.)
But when you reached her, and she was screaming
loudly in fear, you didn’t have the heart:
because you had seen yourself chasing
your little daughter, and you, unsteady
pulled her, all scared, to your chest
and caressing her into your arms
you wrapped her as if to defend her
from the evil one who was the you of before.

Padre, se anche tu non fossi il mio
padre, se anche fossi a me un estraneo,
fra tutti quanti gli uomini già tanto
pel tuo cuore fanciullo t’amerei.

Father, even if you weren’t my
father, even if you were a stranger to me,
above all men, just for
your child’s heart, I’d love you.

You can find out more about Father’s Day in Italy in these two articles:

Una canzone per tutti i papà

Le Frittelle per la Festa del Papà

Tanti auguri a tutti i papà