These are the elements of the Roman spirit.
Acqua Regina, Queen of Water,
your fountains flow from mountain
springs, cool and clean. Down
the aqueducts and spread throughout
the streets, from imposing sculptural
waterworks to the child drinking
from the humble nasone through
cupped hands, water is the first.
Vino rosso, vino bianca, prosecco,
lambrusco, and even the spritz,
enchanting liquors are as ubiquitous
as a basket of bread. A sign hangs
in one of your trattorias: “A meal
without wine is call breakfast.”
Wine is the second.
Your icon soaked the ground
through for sport, filled your roots
like a chalice taken in communion.
The third is the heaviest, and it carves
a channel through the city
like a family’s laughter over dinner
fills the room. Blood is the third.