The Sicilian Inheritance

by Jo Piazza

“A real woman makes a good drink and lights her own fires,

Surprises are the best thing in life and there are too few of them,

Buck up. Get your ass out of bed and seize the goddamn day.

“Would you like to see anything in Palermo before we go? I can take you on a walking tour of the historic district, through the beautiful Quattro Canti, a masterpiece of baroque architecture. We have the very best cathedral, the most spectacular palace. Our Capuchin Catacombs are much more interesting than the ones in Rome, not so big, but much better. And there is the Teatro Massimo, the third-largest theater in Europe, and the fish market. Oh, you must see the fish market.”

Since becoming a mother, I barely had time to remember all the things I once wanted, all the lives I hoped to lead, but sometimes the desire all flooded back and I felt a small death.

When you’ve stepped in the shit you’ve got no choice but to keep walking until you get home to clean yourself up.

I had learned this about men. As headstrong as they could be, they also liked to be told what to do as long as it didn’t question their own intelligence. Men needed to feel useful in a situation they could not control.

It is on friends that one depends to get along in life.

the only way for a woman to survive in this world is to help other women.

Maybe I couldn’t do it all and be everything to everyone and that had to be OK.