If words can no longer be said, gestures remain. “Now my hand shakes hers, and what I would still like to say to her is all there, in the warmth of that grasp, in the memories it evokes, in the legacy it collects”. «There is a moment» continues Gianluca Marras, in art and for his many friends simply Marjani - who signs the beautiful illustration on the dust jacket of L'Unione Sarda on newsstands today (a special gift for all the readers of the newspaper) , inspired by his mother - «in which children become parents of their parents, and that's when we understand how much we owe them and how important they are to us». We understand, says the forty-four-year-old illustrator from Cagliari, that we are what we are because someone drew us, a draft, because the rest is up to us to add, but the shape is the result of genes that have mixed, of caresses, reproaches and teachings, widespread over time. And now that old age lays its ambushes, it is up to the children to support and comfort.

The homage

Without exaggerating, because, echo the centenarians whose wishes fill the inside pages of the newspaper's Christmas dust jacket (to be removed and kept), when you hold the weight of a life on your shoulders, you are solid enough to continue to be the pivot of family. Weak bones and wrinkles cannot prevent an elderly mother and father, for yet another Christmas, from being the center of the party, dispensing advice, telling stories, and if necessary, giving yet another scolding.

Universal message

«It is true that the illustration is inspired by a personal matter» comments the author, protagonist of collective and personal exhibitions, «but its meaning is universal as it summarizes the strength of emotional bonds». Introspection is a characteristic of Marras' art, who added Marjani to his name because in Sardinian it means fox, and this animal, which has always been linked to legends and popular beliefs, is very present in the Japanese culture from which he draws, together with the Sardinian one, to form your own creative style. His works, which range from illustration to design, are strongly influenced by Japanese aesthetics.

That L'Unione competition

«Confronting one's parents' old age can be a traumatic event, but it is fundamental for reconstructing one's own history», says Marras, who had already done so for the collection of short stories "We'll let you know", dedicated to old age, and published by The Sardinian Union in 2020. In the book he is present with a drawing that portrays his elderly father, who died two years earlier.

Roots

«I owe, at least in part, what I am to my father and my mother» comments the illustrator who has gained professional experience in various fields: from the musical one (including the creation of video clips), to the editorial one, through live performances and for the meeting with some national artistic startups. Then, it doesn't mean that everything we owe to those who brought us into the world is positive, but we are made of relationships, and without them we simply aren't. The handshake on the cover, drawn in pencil and then digitally colored, is meant to be this, he explains: «A reminder of the bonds, of the time they ask of us, of the roots that support us».

Centenarians speak

A message that also resonates in the words of the great old men, who, from Teulada to Nuoro, through the special pages collected from the dust jacket of L'Unione Sarda, ideally shake hands with their readers, promoting health, luck and prosperity.

Maria Loi from Ierzu, 100 years old, wishes everyone to reach her age and with relatives around, because everything else: the tree, the gifts, the nativity scene, will also be beautiful to look at, they color the house etc., but the family, that's Christmas. And even the love, which she showered first on her children and then on her grandchildren, weighs much more than the bags full of parcels from the Finnish Father.

Pietrino Culurgioni di Teulada, 106 years old, one of the longest-lived Sardinian men, suffered from hunger and witnessed the economic boom, but now, in his beautiful house with garden, he enjoys the company of his grandchildren and children: four boys and three girls .

From his family who live in Turin, Antonio Brundu di Perdasdefoghu, 105 years old, received a much desired gift, he who loves elegance and literature: trousers, shirt and waistcoat.

The great old men also address a thought to countries at war. From Orgosolo, Michela Battasi, 107 years old, one of the oldest women in Sardinia, declares that she would no longer want to "feel this suffering that the newspapers talk about". There are still too many bombs falling for Battistina Piras from Osini, 104 years old, who witnessed the bombing of the port of Arbatax during the Second World War. Antonietta Ledda from Sant'Anna Arresi, 103 years old, on the other hand, doesn't understand how a woman can die killed in her home by someone who claims to love her. For Christmas "yes, it would be a nice gift not to hear this news anymore".

Alfio Chillotti from Ulassai, turned one hundred years old in September, and is surprised because the doctor who treated him as a child would not have bet a cent on his survival. And instead, he, called "poor guy" for his poor health, laughs it off and continues to travel from one part of the island to the other, happy to be there because there is still something to discover.

How many years ago

Since he turned 105 last November, Sebastiano Maccioni from Nuoro no longer utters the traditional wish "a chent'annos", but he wishes all his fellow countrymen "medas annos cun salude e Fortuna", because without health one cannot go nowhere, but a bit of luck makes the journey easier.

The legacy

In addition to good words, as Gianluca Marjani Marras says, this is the most precious legacy of our centenarians, who have crossed a millennium, and of the accumulated life he cares about the bonds most of all. Not the gift, but the affection that warms Christmas.

Franca Rita Porcu

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