24/12/2023
The Calabrese Spin on the …
' Christmas Story…
“We Three Cumari of Calabria are” aka "The Three Wise Women from Calabria"
Hey Cumari Rosina I heard Mary of Nazareth and Joseph the Carpenter had a baby boy!” Cumari Rosina answered stunned…..”What already?? They only got married six months ago” Cumari Nina quickly replied…..”Cumari mia, you know the first one is always premature!” Cumari Peppina overheard them from her balcony and yelled down….”What are you two gossiping about?” “It's Cumari Maria from Nazareth, she had a baby boy while she and Joseph were down in Bethlehem for the census.” Cumari Nina paused and added….”.premature.”
The three cumari gathered in the piazza and planned to go visit the new born baby and happy couple. Peppina told about her visit to the Temple in Jerusalem and how she heard the Scribes talking about the prophecy of a King of the Jews to be born in Bethlehem and how he would be the Son of God and born of a Virgin. Knowing Mary and Joseph as they did, these three cumari didn’t take long to figure out this might be the Messiah for which they had waited. Rosina told them that three men from the village, astrologers, saw these things in the sky with the appearance of a bright star and were preparing to visit the babe. She met one of the wives in the market buying gold, frankincense and myrrh as baby gifts. “Would you believe those guys bringing gifts like that to a new born baby? We have to go, Cumari mie, these guys haven’t a clue.!”
“You are right Cumari, said Nina, I will make some tagliarini and zucchini casserole.”
“I’ll bring the knitted shawl and blanket I made for my future grandson”……added Rosina.
Peppina chimed in……”I hear she gave birth in a stable….I’ll bring some brooms and mops and fresh linen and clean that place up for them. Chicken soup, we need to bring some good chicken soup…..! What are they going to do with Frankincense and Myrrh???”
The three Calabrese Cumari stopped at the home of a local map maker and had perfect directions to the stable. They didn’t want to take the chance of asking perfect strangers or good forbid the people close to that awful King Herod.
Cumari Peppina told them to double their food gifts since she heard that they had visitors from the Shepherds in the area.
They got there in plenty of time …. ahead of the Three Astrologers who were following some cockamamie star and stopped to blab everything to Herod about the baby. She tried to convince Joseph and Mary to go to Calabria instead of Egypt…the weather was better and so was the food….she reminded them they weren’t treated so well by the Egyptians in the time of their ancestors…….but she couldn’t budge Joseph ……he kept saying something about Angels and stuff.
The three left Jesus, Mary and Joseph well fed and with a clean stable and linens. And an invitation to the Passover Seder for the coming year. They accompanied them part of the way to Egypt and all had a good laugh about the fact that the Three Astrologers got there so late they almost missed seeing the baby.
buon Natale dalla mia famiglia alla vostra famiglia
