Pasquale's story is the story of a love and a return. Closely intertwined. The love is for the sea, the beautiful sea of Abruzzo, and the return is precisely to the small region that gave him birth. April 20th, 95 years ago. Anyone who loves the sea with such an immoderate and deep love knows that he cannot stay away from it for too long, and that is precisely what drives Pasquale Di Marco, every day, drives 27 kilometers there and 27 kilometers back, from Poggio San Vittorino, where he lives, to stroll along the Giulianova seafront.
THE GRANDFATHER OF THE SEA
He arrives, sits down and looks at the seaEvery morning, ever since he returned to Abruzzo from Belgium, where he lived and worked for many years as a young man. A miner's job was hard, confined 900 meters underground, amid the rubble of collapsing tunnels, barefoot, with dim light and dust in his eyes and lungs. That must be why Pasquale loves it so deeply. his Adriatic, so much so that she sat down on a chair on the shore to get a better look at him. And, as she said in an interview with the newspaper La Repubblica, "thank God for the strength he has."
The lockdown period was particularly difficult for him: it was impossible to take the sea away from the "Grandfather of the Sea," as the Giulianova community began to call him, watching him sit contemplating the waves in the morning. Yet, obedient to the regulations, he remained at home during the two months of quarantine, except for dashing to the shore on the first available day after the easing of the precautionary measures.
Armed with a mask and two black bags to collect the plastic, strolling along the shoreline, driven by the desire to clean up the stretch of beach he frequents every day, which is at risk of being marred by garbage. Thrown by those who, according to Pasquale, "no longer respect anything." Not even the sea.
TO KNOW MORE: Cigarettes on the beach, this is how Paola collects thousands of butts every day. Let's do the same!
GRANDFATHER PLASTIC-FREE GIULIANOVA
Nets, polystyrene bottles, pieces of pipes, caps, bottles, even a tireThe black bags fill up quickly, and the beach already seems cleaner. Pasquale's noble gesture has not gone unnoticed, earning him the spotlight, the attention of the local WWF chapter, and many gestures of gratitude. Including another nickname, that of “plastic-free grandpa”His battle against the plastic that's choking the sea was certainly not done to attract attention, but simply as a civil act, for which he shrugs and avoids thanks. Instead, he issues a warning not to throw trash on the beach or in the streets. For now, Pasquale's black bags aren't full of masks and gloves, but the fear is that, with the reopening of the beach season, this type of waste could multiply.
Like any self-respecting lover, Grandpa Pasquale, the grandfather of the sea, would do anything to protect and respect what he loves. For this reason, he turns to the beachgoers, asking them, now that we can enjoy its beauty again, to “Do not throw gloves and masks in the streets, in ditches, on the lands and in rivers because we will find them all in the middle of the sea, in the bellies of fish and in our food".
(The cover image is from Il Messaggero. Images accompanying the text are from Facebook.)
STORIES OF GRANDFATHERS AND GRANDMOTHERS:
- Grandpa Domenico: Back to school at 83. Reading fairy tales to his grandchildren.
- At school thanks to his adoptive grandfather. Every morning he accompanies a blind child.
- Grandma Angela, 98, crochets on the streets of Rome to combat boredom and loneliness.
Want to see a selection of our news?
- Sign up to our newsletter clicking here;
- We are also up Google News , activate the star to add us to your favorite sources;
- Follow us on Facebook, Instagram e Pinterest.