Bella Notte

It was my last night with little Zadie before another separation of a few months. Mama, Mima and Tita (Kerala, Karen and Aunt Talia)  had gone off to hear Fran Lebowitz speak, so it was to be our special night together. We began with some piano playing, putting rocks in containers and taking them out, taking the lids off Tupperware and putting them back on— you know, the usual 18-month entertainment fare. But tonight I had something special planned— to watch our first movie together.

People who know me may be aghast. Encouraging an 18-month old to stare at a screen?

Well, everything in balance and let’s face it, we had had a full week of live music and dance, walks in the park, playing in the playground, throwing and fetching the ball, hugging and snuggling and giggling, working on vocabulary (added “shoe” “Hey, you!” and “I love you”) and more. We earned a moment lost in the magic of the silver screen, even if it was on our old TV.

So we settled down for a Friday night viewing, sprawled out on the living room floor and heads together on the pillow watching the old classic, “The Lady and the Tramp.” For the first 45-minutes, Zadie’s running commentary (every 20 seconds or so) was “Doggie!” We then added “water” and “uh-oh” and had ourselves a delightful time talking to each other and thoroughly enjoying the show. Truth be told, it kind of felt like my first genuine grandpa moment, a special moment together that we both felt as such— well, in my fantasy, at least.

When the gals game back, there we still were, me on the floor sitting on a pillow with Zadie on my lap while Tony sang with his accordion to Lady and the Tramp—“This is the night, such a beautiful night and they call it bella notte.”

And it was.