by Ashley French

A silver coffee press sits on the stove as the warm Italian sunlight cascades into the kitchen. Rosanna Pecorelli scoops grounds into her coffee press from a jar. While sipping the warm and fragrant coffee and eating fresh cherries in the modern and eclectic kitchen, Pecorelli entertains her guests with tales of river rafting in Tibet, life in India and the challenges of raising a family while traveling abroad. Pecorelli enjoys basking in the warmth of her hometown. Although she continues to pine for travel, Cagli holds a special place in her heart.

Located in the Le Marche region of Italy, Cagli is nestled between three mountains and two rivers. The area offers a quiet and peaceful life. The bells ring in the piazza as swallows swoop and chirp. As the sun rises over the mountains, the sunlight reflects on the walls of the city, creating a glow of warmth and tranquility.

"We are born here. Your heart is calling you to come back home," Pecorelli said.

Born in Cagli, Pecorelli moved to Switzerland at the age of 9 and returned to Cagli at the age of 19 to marry her husband, Maurizio. After many years of travel, the family chose to return to Cagli with their last child, Pierpaolo, who is now 12, so he could life in a safe place.

"Our family is all here. We thought, 'Maybe it is time to spend more time with them,'" she said. "When abroad, we saw family only once or twice a year. In 20 years we never stayed to have lunch or make relationships with our family."

When her husband began his work with Ente Nazionale Idrocarburi , an Italian oil company operating out of Milan, Pecorelli chose to follow him in his work to many far-reaching places. While they were living in England as newlyweds, the first addition to their family was born.   Tomas, now 24, lives in Rome with his younger sister, Elisa, 20.   Twelve years later, in 1994, while they were living in Milan, Pierpaolo was born.

The realities of raising children abroad set in for the family.   Traveling became more difficult because, she said, because "the company no longer organized health insurance or even schooling for the children in areas outside of Europe."

Wherever the family lived, the parents always sent their children to an Italian school to learn their native language. "We always planned to go back home," said Pecorelli, especially since universities in Italy are also "more open and inclusive of many subjects." Therefore, for her older children and eventually for Pierpaolo, attending an Italian university was imperative.

Pecorelli knows that someday she and her husband will travel again.

In reflecting upon the places the family lived, Pecorelli speaks fondly of India. "It is beautiful, a very different place. When living in a place, it is different from being a tourist. You know people and make friends. Many people are from everywhere. Traveling depends on the mentality of the person."

Although her love for India shows through, she has good memories of London as well. "I like the mentality of the people. You feel free," she said. "It is a kind of life I like very much".

While living in southern Italy, Pecorelli said she witnessed crime in the streets of Sicily with her two oldest children at her side. " I felt very afraid in Sicily," she said.

Pecorelli said she knew that this was not the life for her son. As she began to think about her family and what they experienced abroad, she realized that Cagli might be a good place to raise her youngest son.   She chose the safety and serenity of her hometown.

Although she knows that Cagli was a good choice, Pecorelli sometimes feels conflicted about staying in Cagli. "The town is too small; the people are strange and narrow-minded," she said.   "The mentality of the people is too close; people are always thinking 'How are you doing?' Everybody knows me but I don't know anyone."

Although the family must stay-- they spent a lot of money to come here-- Pecorelli hopes that her younger son will choose a university far away. That way she and her husband could move someday down the road.

For now, Cagli serves as a safe place for their child. Pecorelli and her husband do not need to worry about their son as he walks to school, plays football or wanders down to the local gelateria.

  "Cagli is a special place," she said. "Big cities offer everything you want, but Cagli offers refuge. Still, I love it; it's my own place."

Photos by Caitlin Rohan
Video by Carrie Cross
Web Design by Jasmin Conner