Trudy

Saturday, June 12, 2010

I awoke feeling excited...well, giddy. Today was the day I would venture to the stairs. Not just any stairs, but a certain majestic flight of rock stairs I had spied from the highway when we returned to Spoleto from Bevagna. In a distance, it looked like a rock wall formation--like a miniature Wall of China--then I realized it was a stairway. From that moment, I wanted to climb them, and now it was time.



Borrowing a trusty map from Michelle (you know...one of those maps that doesn’t show or even name every street) I find the location of the stairs. I don't know the length, but on the map they stretch from my index finger tip to the second knuckle. I start off on my trek, and manage to find my way to the base of the rock stairs, only to discover they were closed off and under repair. A bright orange construction netting stood between me and my goal. (That’s one thing I’ve learned while traveling: construction is universal.) Looking up the hill to the towering cathedral, I decided to take an alternate route which still consisted of stairs, but broken up into segments going this way and that, rather than the immense, long, stairway to heaven.



The climb was beautiful. Stairs and walkways made of stone and brick, flower boxes, colorful laundry hanging from balconies, all seemed to speak to me with an Italian accent. I passed a salt-and-pepper-haired lady sitting on a bench, sewing. Stepping closer I asked (as best I could in my limited Italian) if I could take her picture. She agreed and I snapped a few photos as she continued to work. Focusing through the lens, I saw her task: she was picking out the stitches. I smiled. Mistakes are universal too.



I reached the top of my climb and looked over the panoramic view of Spoleto, over the top of the tiled roof stops, and cobbled streets. Magnificent! As if on cue, bells started to toll in the background. A dog barked in the distance, matching the barking of my leg muscles. I rested on the cool stone of the ancient Cattedrale di San Maria Assunta, looking out to the Piazza del Duomo.. Content. Reflecting on my climb. Maybe someday I will return to Spoleto and climb the newly constructed stairway, but for now I am happy with the ascent. Life has a way of throwing detours, but the journey is still there, and so are the rewards.