In 1951, the former peasant girl who had once only ever travelled by donkey would make yet another journey of a lifetime. Leaving the children with Papa, she delivered her standard "mis mas kanis rezili!" (do not bring shame to the family name) and that was that. The now more worldly Yiayia hopped a train to New York City, then boarded a cruise liner. Destination: Greece and the beloved mother and siblings she hadn't seen in 18 long years.
And so after 12 days at sea, she finally set foot on Greek soil and set eyes on those beloved faces again - faces so achingly familiar, yet so very different now. Her mother Damiani had become an old woman, but her beautiful smile and loving arms bespoke the same tender feeling of home. And despite the years, she was still climbing pear trees, working the olive orchards, and generously sharing her bounty with fellow villagers. Pictures now adorned the walls of that same stone structure Giagia once called home. Photos of Tasso, Anastasia, and Chrysanthy ~ the grandchildren Yiayia's mother had never met yet greatly cherished. Damiani - my great grandmother - would kiss and pray over those beloved photos every night before she went to sleep inside that lonely cottage overlooking the Mediterranean.
Those lost years were perhaps even harder on Yiayia's siblings George and Calliope. Now also parents themselves - they bore the physical signs of those hard years under WWII Axis occupation. And so too did Yiayia's beloved native island of Kythera. After WWII life had slowed, buildings had crumbled, villagers had moved away, and her beloved donkey 'Keecho' had died. But "such is the life" and so Yiayia adapted, endured, and savored every moment of their reunion and the introduction of nephews she'd only ever known through letters.
Meanwhile back in New Kensington, Papou received an angry letter from his family in Kythera. Still hostile toward Yiayia after all these years, they claimed she was having 'too good' of a time on the island. Well indeed she was--for she would reminisce about this long awaited reunion for years. It was certainly sweet, but would it ever be enough to compensate for all the years lost?
And so when she tearfully boarded that return ship for America, she despaired--when would she see her mother again? Happily a few years later, her daughters Chrysanthy and Anastasia would journey to Greece to meet the loving grandmother they'd heard so much about. And they too would be the recipients of her abundant love and eager hugs. But as Yiayia would painfully discover, she herself would never set eyes on or feel the loving arms of her beloved mother again. Such is the life.