Last week when I received a very favorable report as a result of my visit to a physician, I suggested to my wife that we should have lunch at an Italian restaurant here in Millburn called Basilico. Basilico is the Italian word for the herb basil. From that, the events on that day led to this essay being written on Christmas Day, 2009.
When the meal was completed, the co-owner of the restaurant brought us a package of panettone, which is a lovely cake. It is an Italian specialty baked mostly at this time of the year. As Angelo Delbecchi handed me the panettone, he spoke the words, “Buono Natale.” Unfortunately I do not speak Italian, but I understand many of its phrases and “buono natale” is one of them. It means “happy holidays,” “Merry Christmas,” and if you really get down to parsing the words, “buono natale” has to do with the birth of Jesus.
When Angelo Delbecchi said “Buono Natale” to me, the years seemed to fade away. It took me back to December of 1943 when I was in Italy under very trying circumstances. The war was going on and there was much debate about who was winning, ourselves or the Germans? In the end, everything turned out all right, as you may recall.
At that time, Angelo Delbecchi was not even born. But one way or another, the fact that he murmured the words “buono natale” made me feel like I was a young man again.
Automatically I said to Angelo, “Buono natale” and “Molte grazie,” which of course means “many thanks.” Those words came almost automatically and required no effort at all on my part. I was happy, of course, to receive the panettone, but more than anything else, Angelo was treating me as his compatriot in the Italian language. That to me is pretty flattering stuff. To those who want to make everyone speak English in this country, I would say, “Not so fast.” What is wrong with the Spaniards saying “Feliz Navidad?” It is the Spanish way of saying “Merry Christmas.” But I left the Basilico restaurant saying, “Buono Natale” to myself and feeling as though it were 1943 or 1944 once again.
Soon reality sank in, but at this time of year it was flattering for Angelo to use the term “Buono Natale,” and I was more than grateful that the little Italian that I know returned to me almost immediately. So in this Christmas season, I wish you a “Merry Christmas,” “Feliz Navidad,” and more than anything else “Buono Natale.”
E. E. CARR
December 25, 2009
Essay 428
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Kevin’s commentary: It’s hard to believe that Chistmas 2013 is already more than three weeks behind us. I hope Pop had a good one! My family called up to Short Hills either on or after Christmas; if I recall the weather was not so bad and there was fish on the menu for the night.