Cronaca di Cagli

BRAWNY GONZAGA MEN
MAKE LOCAL HISTORY
LONG, SWEATY MARCH INSPIRES

FOUR OF GONZAGA UNIVERSITY'S most rugged student bodies made local history yesterday after being asked to march in Cagli's annual Corpus Cristi procession. The Catholic event, which commemorates the Eucharist and the Last Supper, is celebrated in Cagli with a solemn procession complete with a brass band and megaphone-wielding priest.

The students in question, Frank McCloy, Patrick Snyder, Matt Machia, and Dan Paholski were approached by some locals who, in the words of Frank McCloy, needed "four burly young Americans". "They saw us as cheap labor," McCloy explained. "They saw us as four burly, husky mules."

The four young men were promptly decked out in flowing robes and stood at attention during a morning mass. "I had an idea of the process since I was an altar boy back home when I was younger," McCloy said. "Also, there were some guys pointing at things and mumbling some things in Italian."

The mass was followed by a grueling two-hour walk through Cagli in the scorching summer sun. The four young men held a heavy tent over their heads as they walked. "Dan Paholski had a few problems with the pole," McCloy said with a good-natured smile. "He needed a little help. So did two of the Italians marching. In fact, I was the only one who didn't need any help."

The four young men sweat it out for hours. "When you're walking that long, the poles get heavy," McCloy said. "But I loved it. Maybe I'm a sadomasochist, but it was great. People were awestruck. You hear how deeply religious the Italian people are, but seeing it in person is a different thing. Old women were kneeling down as we passed. They had trouble, but they sure as hell did it."

"Overall, it was awe-inspiring," McCloy told me, gently stroking his chin, deep in thought. "People were genuflecting in front of me. I'd like that back home. I'd be set if I could achieve that kind of status."

He stopped, his eyes focusing on a pigeon dipping its beak in the piazza fountain.

"You know," mused McCloy, "I almost think this whole experience should count as some sort of extra credit."