It's a song, a thank you. But also a way to show love for one's roots. Francesco Cuozzo, a student at the Liceo Scientifico delle Scienze Applicate e della Comunicazione (Applied Sciences and Communications High School) at Othoca in Oristano, won second place in the Traballu e Tzitadinàntzia literary competition, dedicated to the memory of Gigi Bonfanti, a key figure in the CISL union, who has always promoted the values of inclusion, bilingualism, and intergenerational dialogue.
The turnout was impressive, with over 147 pieces of prose and poetry submitted. This morning, amid the artifacts at the Olbia Archaeological Museum, Francesco accepted the award, singing his arrepentina arretrogada. Presenting it to him were not only Roberto Pezzani, general secretary of the FNP CISL, but also his grandparents, to whom he dedicated "Su traballu est cosa santa." "I was inspired by my grandparents," Francesco explained with the simplicity that comes from those who recognize true life mentors, "by their dedication and tenacity in their work, as well as by their love for Sardinian culture."
These are weighty words, in an era when we too often look ahead, forgetting where we come from. But this victory didn't come out of nowhere. It's the fruit of a shared journey, of poetry workshops conducted at school with Professor Francesca Trebino and linguistic expert Antonio Ignazio Garau, from the Oristano Province Language Office.
"It was thrilling," Garau says, "to work with such profound and gifted students." And in these words, one senses the mutual gratitude that arises when teaching and learning truly intersect. And then that recognition becomes something greater: it's not just the success of a talented student, but the celebration of teamwork and of a language that endures and is renewed in the voices of young people.
"Ultimately," Trebino explains, "Su traballu est cosa santa isn't just the title of a poem. It's a legacy passed down from hand to hand, from generation to generation, and today finds a voice in a young man who knows how to look back to move forward, who knows how to speak Sardinian to express something universal: that work, dedication, and love for one's roots are not burdens, but wings."
