Scende la sera

Scritta da Vivienne Decleva

Scende la sera, dal monte al piano

Scende una canzone di uomo lontano

Che torna con il suo gregge dal lavoro.

Mentre una campana ci invita alla preghiera.

Ed ecco, che con il canto scende la sera.

Descends the night

By Vivienne Decleva

As evening descends from the mountain to the plain

So does a song of a distant shepherd returning home with his flock.

While a church bell invites us to prayer.

And so, with songs evening falls.

In my younger days, I lived in Trieste, a city on the Adriatic Sea in Northern Italy. The house where I lived was next to the sea, and every day I looked at the boats and the ships sailing past my window. Although I loved being near the water, I was fascinated by the countryside and the mountains which seemed so far away.

 

On weekends during the spring and summer months, my father drove us in a little Fiat Topolino to the country. I enjoyed being in the country, sensing the sweet aroma of the plants and trees, feeling the gentle touch of the grass and seeing the majestic mountains. I was mesmerised by the chalets and the little churches that dotted the countryside, and curious of the people who lived and worked on the mountains and plains. I was captivated by the beauty and simplicity of the land. So much so that at the age of five, I composed this short poem, which for me represented the countryside and that magical time in the early evening when daylight fades and darkness falls. To this day I still think of that poem and of those magical moments at the edge of the mountains.