Above is my family tree. I have never met my grandfather, Anthony. He passed away in 1987 due to a brain tumor that was inoperable at the time. I don't know much about him, just bits and pieces that I hear from my mother and grandmother. I do know that he was a big macho Italian man that loved baseball and cheered for the Yankees religiously. I also recently found out on Thanksgiving that he was an amateur boxer in the late 50s and early 60s in the greater Stamford area. My grandmother told me, "Your grandfather used to box in cash matches to try and earn some extra dollars for our family. He was a boxer when he attended Stamford high school too. He would do anything for our family, he worked overtime, did side jobs, and always provided for us. I miss him dearly." She was getting choked up talking about him so I gave her some time to recuperate and we carved the turkey together, like we have done for the past 5 Thanksgivings.
That is what I find so nice about traditions and spending time with family, you are able to learn something new every time, but the tradition doesn't change. After dinner, I was eager to learn more about this boxing background so I asked her what some of her favorite memories from his boxing days were. She said that she, “would go watch his matches to support him, but it killed me to see his beautiful face get punched.” She also told me that, "whenever your grandfather would win a boxing match and earn some extra cash, he would always treat us to a chili cheeseburger afterwards. We loved pats hubba hubba but could not go there often because money was so tight." When she told me this my eyes lit up. Of course it was food that connected me to this story. It shows me that we would have gotten along so well. Food is something that brings people together and is very important to me, and it was to my grandfather as well. It was how he showed his love and appreciation for people, by sharing meals with them.
Comments