Knock knock. Who's there?
It's me, Tina.
Tina who?
Aw, come on guys. I haven't been away that long!
Look who I found this summer.
She seems to have lost her head..some of it, anyway.
We feel so connected in that way. Hmmm.
Rusty nail in the head...love!
She's a real mess, but I love her.
Chippy and crumbly with rusty pins and tattered fabric.
She's fairly large to be a pin cushion, but who knows?
The only info I have on her is that she came from
an estate sale of a French family.
I can't determine whether she is papier mache or clay or both.
She reminds me of my junior high school history teacher.
Her name was Edith Volterra and she was a very intimidating sort.
You did not mess with The Vulture, as she was referred to.
I felt sorry for her and so I smiled at her every day.
Sometimes she gave me a small smile back.
Often she did not.
She did make it difficult for the students to like her.
I always wondered why.
I googled Mrs.Volterra and was amazed at what I found.
And her husband, Enrico....wow.
Enrico Volterra has a rich history, including being the son of one of
Italy's most famous mathematicians.
The family was one of Italy's intellectual elite.
I have become so intrigued with their story.
How did a girl from Wisconsin end up married to this man?
Where did their paths cross?
They married in 1952 and he joined the faculty at the University of Texas in 1957.
I'll be reading everything I can find.
I wish I could go back and listen to her stories once again.
The Papers of Enrico Volterra are at CalTech after being donated by Mrs. Volterra.
Enrico passed away in 1973.
That's only two years before I was her student.
Perhaps now I understand.
Enrico's Edith, Lady of the Small-ish Smile.
I'll still be smiling at her.
Edit: Mrs. Volterra passed away at the age of 101 on June 3, 2017.
Thank you to her nephew, Bill, for sharing this information with me.
She is being buried with military honors in Wisconsin.
May she rest in peace.
