In an open cement slab in front of the supreme court building, I sat on a bench overlooking a handful of people enjoying the nice weather. Upon scanning my surroundings, I was quick to notice a small family of three. The family consisted of a heteronormative couple and their child of about two years old. Both mom and dad were young and looked to be around their early thirties. My attention towards the family was triggered by the fact that they were all gathered around the stroller while the mother -like many other Europeans- was casually smoking. She continues to ignore the medical alerts and articles about their health risks as it is a cultural norm and she has been doing it since at least 19. She tried quitting for the baby, but extra financial stress has her more on edge than usual. This would explain why the father was responsible for supervising the child as he played with anything in his sight and chased after pigeons.
As it was Republic Day, they were spending their time off as a family for some quality time and utilizing the beautiful weather. Mom works a full-time job and takes advantage when she has the opportunity to concentrate on her family. However, long days at work leave her exhausted for when times like this arise. Dad has a slightly stronger bond with the little boy at this point, due to his additional time spent with him. He is able to work remotely from home and thus watches over the kid whenever necessary while attending to work on his own time.
As the sun beamed down at its peak, leaving little shade around, a bit of rest was due for the family. They had already been at the piazza for at least an hour chasing the little boy around in the grass and it just so happened to be approaching 12:30 pm. The mom rummages around the stroller to simultaneously reorganize and check to make sure everything is present. After a few minutes, she gave the go-ahead and the family of three left to sit down and enjoy a nice lunch at home.
(Piazza Cavour, 6/2/19)
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