Ukraine & Partisan Flowers
In the past few weeks, the world has witnessed a historic example of tenacity and strength in the Ukrainian people. Their courage and resolve are inspirational. They stand with other past heroes who were willing to give their all for liberty, for the individual’s rights. If real life were like the movies, their theme song, the music that plays in the background whenever they appear on screen, would be Bella Ciao. The words to Bella Ciao are:
One morning I awakened
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
One morning I awakened
And I found the invader
Oh partisan carry me away
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
Oh partisan carry me away
Because I feel death approaching
And if I die as a partisan
(And if I die on the mountain)
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
And if I die as a partisan
(And if I die on the mountain)
Then you must bury me
Bury me up in the mountain
(And you have to bury me)
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
Bury me up in the mountain
(And you have to bury me)
Under the shade of a beautiful flower
And the people who shall pass
(And all those who shall pass)
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
And the people who shall pass
(And all those who shall pass)
Will tell me: “what a beautiful flower”
(And they will say: “what a beautiful flower”)
This is the flower of the partisan
(And this is the flower of the partisan)
Oh Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful, Goodbye beautiful! Bye! Bye!
This is the flower of the partisan
(And this is the flower of the partisan)
Who died for freedom
This song began in the 19th century in the rice paddy fields of Italy’s Po valley. Initially, Bella Ciao described the horrid working conditions suffered by the mondine, seasonal female workers. Using this song as the anthem for their labor protest, Bella Ciao soon became the canticle of all oppressed people who resist exploitive regimes. This song took on even greater importance during World War II when it became a type of hymn of the anti-fascists. They ask if they die as a partisan, fighting the invader, that they be buried in the mountains under a beautiful flower, and that flower is the flower of the partisan who died for freedom. When I hear this, I think of all the generations of men and women who fought to build a better world for us, their descendants.
Recently, Bella Ciao has developed a new audience through the Netflix show Money Heist. However, Bella Ciao is sung happily in this series, often as part of celebrations. While it certainly has an upbeat rhythm, I am uncomfortable with it being treated as a party song. As I had noted above, it is a hymn of the oppressed. It is sung to remember those who paid the ultimate price for freedom.
When I hear the words one morning I awakened and found the invader, I think of Ukrainians waking on February 24 to find the invaders in their homeland. How many Ukrainians said goodbye to loved ones who were feeling to Poland and other parts of Europe? How many stayed behind, willing to die for their homeland?
What bound this song in my heart with the Ukrainian people is the above image from the San Diego Tribune. Sunflowers, Ukraine’s National Flower. Forever sunflowers will be for me the flower of the partisan. I see a picture of Ukrainian freedom fighters’ graves adorned with sunflowers, which reminds me of something I read recently. The book To The Field of Stars by Kevin Codd is a journal of a Catholic priest walking the Santiago De Compostella. At one point, he passes a wheat field where there was a battle between Christians and Moors centuries ago. He contemplates how the blood soaked into the ground and eventually became wheat. Wheat that was possibly used to make Eucharists that literally were composed of the flesh and blood who died in that battle. In a very real sense, the sunflowers over those graves are the faces of those who gave their lives for freedom. I will never be able to look at sunflowers in any other way again. Sunflowers that will bloom when the winter of hostility inevitably gives way to a free Ukraine.
As I said above, Bella Ciao would be their theme song if this were the movies. Unfortunately, this is real life, where there is no stirring music in the background to rouse our spirits, and sometimes the bad guy wins. However, since this is real life, we need to do our part to aid Ukrainians in their fight. We need to do more than send thoughts and prayers, but the weapons and support they need to be victorious.
Americans, Italians, all freedom-loving people of the world need to stand with the people of Ukraine.
To read more about Italian and Italian-American culture read my book, Italianità: The Essence of Being Italian and Italian-American.