Seeing Through The Smog ... Clearly! An Autobiography, (Paperback)

If you would like to be entertained and amazed with stories of family life, traditions, secrets, illness, death, tragedy, and triumph, Seeing Through The Smog ... Clearly! has it all. Imagine growing up in a small town and living through the Great Depression with minimal resources yet still learning the skills to survive and live within your means. Adela Damiani Costanza did just that at an early age. These skills served her well as she encountered various experiences. Seeing Through The Smog...Clearly! is a life story of one woman's experiences spanning nine decades. It leads you through the ups and downs of her life that intertwined with major national and international historical events, such as the Industrial Age, the Great Depression, World War II, the Donora Smog, the Cuban Missile Crisis, and the Hippy Era. It begins with growing up in a small town called Donora in southwestern Pennsylvania and follows a journey through several life altering events. Adela Damiani was the fifth daughter of Italian immigrants, Maria Grazia Muscelli and Florindo Damiani. Her life was very simple in those early years. Her family lived through many trials and tribulations of a large family struggling to carve out a living during the Great Depression, one of the first national historical events impacting her life. She grew into a beautiful young woman, completed high school, became a beautician, and then, fell in love and married an Italian immigrant, Antonino Costanza. Following her marriage, another historical event presented her with a personal tragedy, the Donora Smog. After this tragic event, she moved with her husband and four children to southeastern Florida where she continued her career as a beautician and raised her children. Her life changed again in a dramatic way as she left the comfort and security of her small hometown to start her new life in an unfamiliar location. This move tremendously expanded her horizons as she encountered life in a rapidly growing contemporary urban community. Historical events seemed to weave their way into her life. Adela frames her story against the backdrop of several of these events. Through it all, Adela managed to stay happily married for fifty-six years, raise a family, maintain a career, and document her journey. Through each turn of events, she worked diligently to maintain a close knit family, but ironically, her immediate family members are now living across three continents. The writing of this memoir was initiated more than forty years ago and was put on hold after her husband's death. While grieving, she herself developed a life threatening illness which delayed the completion. According to Adela, it is her faith and God's guidance that miraculously returned her to health. Her Catholic upbringing and strong family traditions were the foundation of her life. Throughout the book, "Praise be to God" is written to express her gratitude for HIS blessings and guidance. She felt HIS presence in her life and truly believes that through HIS grace, she is still alive today. She has worked diligently to complete this memoir even up to the ripe age of 94. Adela has remarked many times, "I would love to see it in print before I go to heaven." This deeply moving journey is from one ordinary woman's perspective as a daughter, wife, mother, grandmother, great grandmother, beautician and armchair historian. Her vision is to show how her determination and faith in God guided her through life's obstacles ...