I was shocked and saddened by the tragic death of an Italian calciatore (soccer player) last Saturday during a partita (match). At the age of 25, Piermario Morosini, a midfielder for Livorno, suffered a cardiac arrest and died on the campo (field). All thirteen partite that were to be held last weekend for both the Serie A and B were immediately cancelled.

When I woke up this morning, I felt a little melancholy. I was thinking about my trip to Paris on Sunday. Once again, I’ll be away from Florence for 12 days. I miss my beloved city already and yet I’m still here. I want to see more, experience more, and enjoy more precious moments before I take off. When I go to Paris, I feel as if a part of me is left behind. Not a vital part, but one that I certainly notice is not with me when I’m in Paris.

Ever since I saw the announcement about Palazzo Strozzi’s exhibit “Americani a Firenze,” I had been wanting to go. I love how the mostre (exhibits) at Palazzo Strozzi present many different aspects of my beloved city. The current mostra definitely intrigued me, not just because I’m an American in Florence, but because I too came to Florence the first time in 1997 to be inspired.

I was looking forward to Pasqua (Easter) in Florence with my family last Sunday. I was hoping to see the scoppio del carro (explosion of the cart), but I ended up not going. At 10am right when I was about to leave the house, the rain began to fall. Not a light sprinkle, but a downpour. I was disappointed to miss such a special and unique event, but hopefully next year I can attend.

Florence, Paris, and back again. Even I find my life a little difficult to follow. At least once a month, I leave my home to temporarily live (for 12 days) in Paris. Ever since I moved back to Florence in 2004, I rarely felt the need or desire to leave it. I’d usually go away maybe once or twice a year. It’s not that I don’t love to travel, but I love staying in my beloved city even more.

When I leave Paris, I can see far into the distance from the airplane. It’s a rather flat city that seems to go on for kilometers in every direction. Today with a light haze between me and the ground, it looks as if Paris is behind a veil. I peered out the window, but couldn’t make out much of the city at all. Sometimes, I can see the Arc de Triomphe, the Seine, and the Eiffel Tower. Today, all I see are a few brownish patches of land, a river, and an accumulation of buildings, which I think is the city.