This is a tribute to cousin Rosetta, who passed away from this world on May 3, 2003, but she lives on in my memories of Italy. She lives on in the memories of our family both in Italy and America. She was a maker of feasts and now awaits us at the great feast with another maker of feasts.

It was the chance of a lifetime! It was a dream come true to visit my great grandparents' hometown of Ascoli Piceno, Italy and meet my relatives there. We spent four days and ate multiple meals with these people who are kin. Their facial features and personality traits reminded me of relatives in New Jersey. The only differences were our citizenship and language.

Rosetta Meloni, my grandpop's first cousin, prepared for a month for our visit. Homemade pasta, gnocchi, and lasagna all lovingly cooked up in her tiny kitchen. There are no elevators in her apartment building; she carried the food down from her third floor apartment to an extra freezer in the basement. Most likely, she counted the days till our arrival. Eight family members traveled from New Jersey to Italy to see her, meet her family and see the land that is still apart of our genetic memory.

Rosetta was a matriarch. She was the oldest of 4 children, left to raise her three siblings when her mother and then, her stepmother died. She married and had 3 beautiful girls. While the girls were still young Rosetta's husband was killed in an accident. Once again she was left to raise children on her own. Despite the hardships, she was robust, full of life, full of laughter and history.

My cousin Rosetta, use to look out from her apartment balcony and see on the hill the old farmhouses where my great grandparents (her aunt and uncle) grew up and fell in love. I would have loved to hear more stories about them. But those stories about my great grandparent's early days were locked in her mind. I couldn't speak her language. I only got a skimping of stories and history through the labored translating of my great aunt, who miraculously remembered the language she hadn't spoken in nearly 25 years.

Thinking of Rosetta makes me laugh. I remember her coming out of her tiny kitchen bringing out more delicious treats: bowls of fresh figs, fried olives or homemade ravioli. She presented them to us at the table with a beaming smile and "Wol-La." I could tell she got such a thrill out of our "oooooohs" and "ahhhhhhs." We marveled over the variety of foods Rosetta brought out of that teeny kitchen.

Once upon a time, there was group of people that marveled over a tiny amount of food that multiplied to feed thousands. There wasn't a month to prepare a feast for the thousands of people that would attend a spur of the moment crusade on a mountainside. "We have here only five loaves of bread and two fish," they answered. "Bring them here to me," he said. And he directed the people to sit down on the grass. Taking the five loaves and the two fish and looking up to heaven, he gave thanks and broke the loaves. Then he gave them to the disciples, and the disciples gave them to the people. They all ate and were satisfied, and the disciples picked up twelve basketfuls of broken pieces that were left over. The number of those who ate was about five thousand men, besides women and children. Matthew 14:17-21(NIV)

Jesus provided a feast for the five thousand, which satisfied a temporary physical need but also revealed his power. Rosetta followed in his footsteps providing for those who gathered in her home. She filled our stomachs but also filled us with memories and expressions of love. Jesus did the same thing. Oh the stories that could have been passed down. Perhaps some said to their children, "We didn't know what we were going eat, all we knew was we had to listen to the Rabbi Jesus. We couldn't help ourselves. Then, he told us to separate in small groups and his followers carried around baskets of bread and they just never went empty. It was truly amazing. I knew then Jesus was no ordinary man."

Jesus came to feed the hungry. Not just to end the tummy rumblings but he came to satisfy the soul's starvation for intimacy with God. Jesus could create bread out of thin air, but He is the bread that will never leave us hungry. As long as we feast on him in our spirit, we will never starve. For the bread of God is he who comes down from heaven and gives life to the world." Then Jesus declared, "I am the bread of life. He who comes to me will never go hungry, and he who believes in me will never be thirsty." John 6:33,35

I met Rosetta several years ago. It wasn't until after hearing about her death, (May 3, 2003) that I realized our visit was a joy and honor for her. For months I have been asking myself, "Who is this Jesus?" Remembering Rosetta and her bowl of figs helped me to see who Jesus is. Another facet of this God I call my Savior. Rosetta was both thrilled and eager to bless us. She prepared feasts for us because she already loved us. Her triumphant look as she crossed over the kitchen threshold conveyed, "Now look what I have for you! I was proud to cook this for your, I hope you are pleased, my honored guests." Looking back I am certain Jesus was in the kitchen with Rosetta

That same look of pleasure, excitement and honor is on Jesus' face as well. We are Jesus' honored guests in this world. In my heart, I feel his face beaming with love, "Now look what I have for you!" He daily brings forth a plate and presents it to us with a look of "I made this for you. This will give you strength; this will nourish your body and soul. This is my best! Prepared in love to make you proud and to bless you. I hope you are pleased. I did this because I love you. This is just a taste, a sample of what is to come. There is a greater feast coming that you can only catch a glimpse of here on earth."

One night we dined alfresco on the roof a 900-year-old "row home." That night the feast was more than just food. The people gathered were touching souls, crossing over language barriers and generational gaps and I had a glimpse of the great feast awaiting us. We were all astir; excited to be there, excited to meet people we only ever heard of, excited to meet people that reminded us of someone back home. There was closeness; there was intimacy the likes of which I never really felt. I soaked it all in the best I could. I tried to be an active participant and spectator of this glorious historic event. I was sitting at a table, a community, with un-translated communication, yet there was understanding- we are family.

   There will come a day when Rosetta, my great grandparents, my brother, my Savior and all those that have chosen to believe in Jesus will gather together. On that day there will be no language barriers, no generational gaps and we will know -really know- the people that came before us and after us. We will sit at the feast and enjoy the company. Perhaps we will hear the stories from the books the world was too small to hold. (John 21:25) Maybe, I will finally get to hear the stories that death and language barriers kept from me.

As one of the family, I knew I was welcome to sit at Rosetta's table. As a believer in Jesus I know I will be apart of the heavenly celebration that awaits those that love him. He is preparing a feast for his people to celebrate "On this mountain the LORD Almighty will prepare a feast of rich food for all peoples, a banquet of aged wine- the best of meats and the finest of wines." Isaiah 25:6

So I ask you what are we hungry for? Jesus is both the feast maker and the feast. He has created within himself such delights the senses can only sample in our finite bodies. With creative genius He provides for our daily needs. Such beautiful and wonderful expressions of love He presents to us that make the mouth fall open in amazement. If you listen carefully you just might hear "Wol-La!"…