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The Italian Angel...she is called this because she was painted in Italy two weeks before Christmas several years ago. 

I was in Italy visiting my friend Gervasio and his family from late November through the middle of December.  I had been going back and forth for a number of years but this was the first time I was there with his family for the holiday season.  Gervasio's mother lived there with him, and it didn't seem to matter how nice I was to her, I couldn't seem to win.  She was 95 and pretty spunky even though she was crouched over and wore a long dress and a shawl that dragged the floor behind her.  I don't even think she was four feet tall.  She didn't have any teeth and because her white hair was such a mess, they cut it all off like a crew cut only it was about three inches long and sticking straight up.  She barely got around with her cane but she did manage to trip or poke me with it from time to time when nobody was looking.  

When I did my laundry she complained that I didn't know the right way to hang the clothes and she would move everything around.  If I cooked she wouldn't touch the food.  When I dressed up to go out, she made comments under her breath that I didn't want translated.  My brother visited one year when I was staying at this home and she was thrilled with him.  Gervasio often asked her why she didn't like me and her response would include...I like her brother, she doesn't eat enough, she eats too much chocolate, she's American and someday she will be fat, she's too nice so you cannot trust her...and so on - you get the picture.

This particular visit she became very ill and was staying in bed.  I wondered if it was because I was there and maybe she was pouting.  After a few days though it did seem she was not well.  I asked Gervasio if he could take me to the art store so I could buy some supplies to paint an angel for her.  He took me to a hardware store and showed me house paint.  Obviously he didn't know anything about art supplies.  I drove to Perugia and found an art store and purchased what I needed.  The next step was to find a place in the house to set up and paint so Gervasio looks at my supplies and takes me down to a dark room in the basement of this old historic building where he lived.  I explained to him that I needed light.  Eventually I ended up on the balcony painting in a cramped space, but I did have a beautiful view of the Umbrian countryside.  Once the angel was finished, I placed her in a frame and hung beside his mother's bed so the angel was looking down at her.  When the mother saw the angel the next day and Gervasio explained that I had painted as her Christmas gift, she actually smiled.  I felt I had made some progress!

As I was saying goodbye to everyone a few days later to head back to the States, his mother actually let me give her a hug.  Gervasio said, "now do you like her?"  Her response was "maybe, but she still eats too much chocolate!"