poh, poh, poh, poh, poh, poh - pooooooh

I just had to make that the title of this post - it's my feeble attempt at phonetically spelling out one of the many victory chants of the Italian tifosi - soccer fans - that I heard during the World Cup mania of 2006, when I was a student in that sleepy mountain town a couple hours north of bellissima Roma, the year that the Italian national team - the beloved Azzurri - won the Mondiale against the hated French.  It's supposed to be the opening bass line of the song "Seven Nation Army" by the White Stripes - to this day, when I hear that melody, I'm transported to a piazza in Perugia, where I heard that riff chanted over and over again, as the Italians waved the tricolore and lit smokebombs and celebrated that marvelous run by their national team. 

All of the frenzy of the World Cup - which begins tomorrow! - has had me reminiscing on that amazing summer, the most influential summer that I've ever lived (with the exception of last summer, when we were married).  I learned so much about my feeble self that summer - about my strongest desires, about my dignity as a woman, about the ability to love.  That summer that the Azzurri won the World Cup was completely life-changing for me - and it prepared my heart for the man I would begin to date just a year later, and, eventually, marry.  Funny how something that seems so innocuous - a five-week study-abroad opportunity in Italy - would become so momentous for the course of my life.  I remain so grateful for the chance to travel there, to experience Italy in all her splendor, and for the experiences I had in that country, that would help to form me into the woman (and wife!) that I am today.  

And as for the Mondiale of 2010?  World Cup fever has struck our house, and is often a point of conversation for us.  I learned several months ago that I married a man very dedicated to watching every waking moment of the tournament, a pastime that dates back ten, fourteen years.  While the Americans are on our short list, we're also backing our favorite European teams (that are, thankfully, not in the same group as the United States!).  My dear husband is rooting for Espana, the favorite, and his favorite team for many years (he claims it's a pick to honor his Spanish heritage).  

As for me?  I will don my Francesco Totti #10 jersey from the most recent Mondiale with pride, and cheer for "my" boys, my beloved Azzurri, a squad so integral, and so popular, in that summer of 2006.  As the defending champions, I know their chances of a repeat performance are slim, yet, it will be so wonderful to watch them once more, and to be transported back to that beautiful summer - the summer I learned to love.  


forza Azzurri!!  :-)