Reflections

I believe that Dante was writing for people of all times and place when he composed the 3-part masterpiece of his Paradiso, Purgatorio, and Inferno. An exile himself, he not only embarked on a journey towards another Italian town, but also on a spiritual one of traversing the depths of the human condition in relation to God and life after death.

Relaxing around the candle-lit dinner table amidst miniscule ravishing mosquitos, next to an illuminated endless swimming pool, trickling instrumental dinner music blended into the diving and escalating pitch of Italian conversation. The setting: poignantly Italian. The topic of conversation: Dante.

These Italians remember Dante, and care to expound upon his journey through the three places of the afterlife. I stopped listening to their commentary and began my own review of an author who I vehemently admire and thoroughly enjoyed studying while a senior in college.

I believe that everyone is on a journey. I think that we all have our times and places of Paradise, Purgatory, and Hell. There are people we meet in life, some whom we care to mirror and some whom we write off as flawed and problematic. Every individual can be a better person if they take these experiences, critique them, and learn from them. Dante traveled, following Virgil who was sent by Our Father above, from the highest levels of endless praise to God to the lowest levels of frozen bodies forever in torment. At times Dante was afraid. At times Dante was in awe. At times Dante recognized friends and wished he never knew where they presently were. Yet, with every step, Dante learned more about the human condition and the effect that choices made have on a person forever.

THAT being said, I have learned a lot about the human condition during my going-on-four-weeks stay here in Alviano, Italy. I have talked with many people, observed many things, and have been treated in many ways. I realize that at times it’s very hard to see through the façade that many, if not most, people put up. Respect is something that makes the world go round. People cannot be happy if they lack basic necessities. Money makes someone think the world of themselves and merda of others. If someone’s word doesn’t mean anything, they mean nothing to you. A nectarine may look tantalizing and flawless, yet have worms sifting beneath the surface.

And that last sentence was not meant only to be taken literally.