L'Italo-Americano

THURSDAY, AUGUST 5, 2021 www.italoamericano.org 16 L'Italo-Americano LA VITA ITALIANA TRADITIONS HISTORY CULTURE D ear Readers, an August as- sortment of Ital- ian connections for you: *** A u g u s t w a s n a m e d t o h o n o r t h e f i r s t R o m a n e m p e r o r ( a n d g r a n d - nephew of Julius Caesar), Augustus Caesar (63BC- AD14). *** August is the month of figs. The first plant men- tioned in the Bible is the fig, when its leaves served to hide the nakedness of o u r e r r a n t p r o g e n i t o r s . Biblical references seem to make it a symbol of what is good and aspired to: "Every man under his vine and under his fig tree" may be the ultimate state- ment of the good life, espe- cially if there is some sweet prosciutto di Parma to go with the figs. The fig is also entwined i n R o m a n l e g e n d . T h e Romans believed a fig tree t o h a v e b e e n c o n n e c t e d with the founding of Rome, f o r t h e c r a d l e i n w h i c h Romulus and Remus were f l o a t e d d o w n t h e T i b e r became lodged in the roots of a fig tree on the river- bank which then became the site of the city. More likely, the fig tree was the one in the Roman Forum under which the she-wolf was said to have suckled the twins, for that tree sur- vived into historical times, where it was honored by annual festivity. Figs are extremely rich in sugars, protein, lipids, phosphorus, and iron. The high vitamin C content of fresh figs makes them a g r e a t r e m e d y a g a i n s t fatigue. *** The Italian American H e r i t a g e F o u n - dation was established in S a n J o s e o n A u g u s t 5 , 1 9 7 5 a s t h e I t a l i a n American Bi-Centennial Committee. In 1976, the original fifteen founders incorporated a non-profit organization dedicated to t h e p r e s e r v a t i o n o f t h e Italian heritage through cultural, educational, and social programs. "Grazie" to the generosity of spirit and "soldi" of some of the original founders and to the continued generosity of s p i r i t a n d d e d i c a t i o n o f volunteers. The I.A.H.F. has contin- ued to present programs that bring much joy to the Italo-Americans and their friends living in San Jose, and beyond since 1976. *** America's school boards are spending more time on n o n - s c h o l a s t i c m a t t e r s than ever before. A New J e r s e y s c h o o l d i s t r i c t i s removing the names of all holidays from the school calendar so as not to offend anyone. The decision came a f t e r a r a u c o u s p u b l i c meeting about the board's d e c i s i o n t o r e p l a c e " C o l u m b u s D a y " w i t h "Indigenous People's Day." Every holiday will now be listed as a "day off" so "we don't have to have anyone w i t h h u r t f e e l i n g s , " explained board member Dorene Roche. *** August 16, St. Rocco's Feast Day, is celebrated with great enthusiasm in m a n y s m a l l t o w n s o f S o u t h e r n I t a l y . V i s i t i n g b a n d s a r e h i r e d b y t h e C o m i t a t o d e l l a F e s t a d i S a n R o c c o a n d s p e c i a l foods baked, like ex-voto of pane tostato, spicy bread s h a p e d l i k e p a r t s o f t h e body that need San Rocco's blessed intervention for healing. *** A v a i l a b i l i t y o f t i m e - pieces: in the days before wall clocks and wristwatch- es became readily avail- able, people relied on clock towers in their towns and villages to keep track of time... The world's first clock t o w e r s w e r e b u i l t i n Venice, Padova, Orvieto and other Italian cities in the early 14th century! *** Advancing our Legacy: Italian Community Services CASA FUGAZI If you know of any senior of Italian descent in San Francisco needing assistance, please contact: ItalianCS.org | (415) 362-6423 | info@italiancs.com Italian Community Services continues to assist Bay Area Italian-American seniors and their families navigate and manage the resources needed to live healthy, independent and productive lives. Since Shelter-in-Place began in San Francisco, Italian Community Services has delivered over 240 meals, over 900 care packages and made over 2000 phone wellness checks for our seniors. August 79 AD. Pompeii, ancient city in Campania, at the foot of M t . V e s u v i u s w a s destroyed and buried by an eruption of the volcano. It has in recent years been excavated, the consequent discoveries adding consid- erably to our scant records of Roman domestic life and culture. It is first heard of i n t h e 4 t h c e n t u r y B C , w h e n i t w a s a S a m n i t e town, conquered by that people from its previous f o u n d e r s . T h e c i t y t o o k part in the Social War, 91- 89 BC, when it withstood for a long time the Roman army. The city later became a f a s h i o n a b l e r e s o r t f o r wealthy Romans. In AD 63 p a r t o f t h e t o w n w a s d e s t r o y e d b y a n e a r t h - quake. Scarcely had this d i s a s t e r b e e n r e p a i r e d , w h e n t h e e r u p t i o n o f Vesuvius in AD 79 buried t h e t o w n i n c i n d e r s a n d ashes. Excavation, which began only in 1763, was not carried on systematically until the 19th century. Over half of the site had been e x c a v a t e d , r e v e a l i n g remains of buildings in a remarkable state of preser- vation. From these discov- eries our knowledge of the types of houses occupied by all classes in a Roman city has been much increased. Extensive excavations were carried out in 1932-35 both a t P o m p e i i a n d a t t h e n e i g h b o r i n g c i t y o f H e r c u l a n e u m a n d h a v e c o n t i n u e d s i n c e . A n E x h i b i t i o n , T h e L a s t S u p p e r i n P o m p e i i is currently on display at the Legion of Honor Museum in San Francisco. Selling Homes Throughout The Bay Area Adele Della Santina "The Right Realtor makes all the di昀erence." 650.400.4747 Adele.DellaSantina@compass.com www.AdeleDS.com DRE# 00911740 Expert in preparation, promotion, and negotiation!

• Cover