{"id":9501,"date":"2015-06-24T21:54:35","date_gmt":"2015-06-24T19:54:35","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/?p=9501"},"modified":"2015-06-24T21:54:35","modified_gmt":"2015-06-24T19:54:35","slug":"my-fathers-old-trade","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/blogs.transparent.com\/italian\/my-fathers-old-trade\/","title":{"rendered":"My Father\u2019s Old Trade"},"content":{"rendered":"

By Serena with English translation by Geoff<\/em><\/span><\/p>\n

In questi giorni mio pap\u00e0 vive con noi, cio\u00e8 con me, Geoff e otto gatti, perch\u00e9 mia mamma non sta bene ed \u00e8 ricoverata in ospedale. Per tenere tranquillo mio padre e non fargli venire in mente brutti pensieri, ho scoperto un trucco semplice ma molto efficace: gli faccio disfare dei lavori a maglia e fare i gomitoli. Per pap\u00e0, che ha novantaquattro anni, \u00e8 un\u2019ottima terapia occupazionale poich\u00e9, oltre a tenerlo impegnato fisicamente e mentalmente, lo riporta con la memoria alla sua infanzia.<\/strong><\/p>\n

At the moment my father is living with us, meaning with me, Geoff and eight cats, because my mother is unwell and has been admitted to hospital. To keep my father calm and not let him have unpleasant thoughts, I’ve discovered a simple and very effective trick: I get him to undo pieces of knitting and make them into balls of wool. For dad, who is ninety four years old, it’s a great occupational therapy because, apart from keeping him physically and mentally busy, it takes him back to his childhood memories.<\/p>\n

\"DSCN2473\"<\/a>

Pap\u00e0 in giardino in compagnia di due degli otto gatti.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Mentre avvolge la lana intorno al gomitolo mi racconta di quando, da bambino, il pomeriggio lui, i suoi fratelli e le sue sorelle aiutavano la madre e le zie a sfare le matasse e a fare i gomitoli: \u201cMia madre aveva una merceria e vendeva la lana Borgosesia. Noi ci sedevamo sugli sgabelli nel negozio a tenere le matasse, mentre le zie stavano sedute sulle sedie e avvolgevano i gomitoli. Ma non avevamo mica queste cose moderne che usi tu (l\u2019arcolaio!)\u201d mi dice, \u201cusavamo le nostre braccia per tenere stesa la matassa di lana, e dopo un po\u2019 ci stancavamo a tenere sollevate le braccia e la matassa cadeva a terra e si ingarbugliava tutta\u201d.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Whilst he winds the wool into a ball he tells me about when, as a child, he and his brothers and sisters helped their mother and aunts each afternoon to undo skeins of wool and make them into balls: “My mother had a haberdashery and sold Borgosesia (a quality brand name)<\/em> wool. We’d sit on stools in the shop holding the skeins, whilst my aunts sat on chairs winding the wool into balls. But we didn’t exactly have these modern things that you use (the skein winder!)” he tells me, “we’d use our arms to keep the skein stretched out, and after a while we’d get tired of holding our arms out, the skein would fall to the floor and get into a complete muddle”.<\/p>\n

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Pap\u00e0 ed io, accanto al telaio, decidiamo quale lana usare per la nuova spoletta.<\/strong><\/em><\/span><\/p><\/div>\n

Visto che ormai \u00e8 un esperto con la lana, domenica scorsa l\u2019ho portato con me a Pontremoli per la rappresentazione storica degli antichi mestieri<\/a><\/span>. Seduto su una vecchia sedia impagliata vicino a me e al telaio su cui io dimostravo la tessitura, mi ha aiutato egregiamente a preparare le spolette con la lana per la trama, sotto gli occhi ammirati delle mie amiche.<\/strong><\/p>\n

Seeing as he’s an expert on wool by now, I took him with me to Pontremoli last Sunday for a historic re-enactment of the ancient trades. Sitting on an old wicker chair next to me and the loom on which I was demonstrating weaving, he did a great job of helping me to prepare the shuttles with wool for the weft, in front of the admiring eyes of my friends.<\/p>\n

P.S. Aiuto, sto finendo la lana da far disfare a pap\u00e0. Dovr\u00f2 sferruzzare qualcosa da fargli disfare!<\/strong><\/p>\n

P.S. Help, I’m running out of wool for my dad to undo. I’ll have to knit up something for him to undo!<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"\"\"

By Serena with English translation by Geoff In questi giorni mio pap\u00e0 vive con noi, cio\u00e8 con me, Geoff e otto gatti, perch\u00e9 mia mamma non sta bene ed \u00e8 ricoverata in ospedale. Per tenere tranquillo mio padre e non fargli venire in mente brutti pensieri, ho scoperto un trucco semplice ma molto efficace: gli…<\/p>\n

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