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This is really weird, I never thought of writing a review about my mama. I have written reviews about my dad and my twin sister and when I went back home the first thing I did was to show my dad and sister my reviews; my sister was very happy about it and my dad was very proud and full of joy. While my mama stood there and congratulated me for such a great piece of writing, I looked at her eyes and saw that look: it nearly killed me! I felt very guilty and couldn't sleep that night!

So I decided this time I guess I SHOULD write a review about my MAMA, especially because she has stood behind me and supported me so much recently. I have discovered that after all these years I have never really understood her correctly. I regret now having been distant from her and never having being that close. I smiled and assured her that I wouldn't be that harsh, but that I will say all that is in my heart, good or bad.

This is Carmela's story with its good times and bad; its ups and downs: I hope you will find it as good as my dad's review!

~~ CHRISTMAS 1954 ~~

Carmela was the eldest daughter of Alano and Gina (my grandmother was Italian), so she's got the Italian look mixed with Spanish blood.

It had been an unusually warm night, even for Spain, mama said. My grandmother was shopping for the Christmas dinner that morning (a small shop was open for essentials, even on Christmas morning) when suddenly her waters broke and she went into labour! I'm not sure whether they ever got their Christmas dinner that day, but they certainly got a sweet surprise when my mother was born! Carmela was a beautiful child. She was to be the first child of many. Her first brother, my uncle, was born a year later, there were three sets of twins, and four more children. Gina, their mother, was a tough mother with a strong personality; she treated the whole family like an army camp to keep order.

My grandfather was a Spanish Civil Servant, and was in many ways quite hard to live with, and a harsh man with his children. Gina was Italian, and had already been divorced from a violent man when she was only 19, having to leave her three daughters behind with him. She was determined to make THIS marriage work. Carmela was the eldest of a huge family of 9 girls and 3 boys. Imagine a family that big, I don't know how they managed to live! But they did and with a very small income (my grandmother worked as a tailor to help support her family) my grandparents managed to raise them up and educate them all!

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