Scopa is a common Italian card game, named after the yelling of the word “SCOPA”, meaning “broom”. Why broom you ask? When you yell out scopa, you sweep the table and take all the cards into your pile to count at the end of the game. Typically, the game is played with 4 players who are in teams of 2, and the main goal is to get to 21 total points in as many hands as it takes. Now, with a basic and very vague understanding of how to play the game, this story can commence, as the rules aren’t needed to understand this story.
My family consists of many cousins on my dad’s side; there are a total of 10 including me. Every Thanksgiving, Christmas, and Easter we gather at my nonna’s (grandmother’s) to eat, laugh, and most importantly, have an all-out scopa battle. This tournament starts with the drawing of teams: all the cousins put their names in a hat, and then they draw! Whoever’s name you pull is your partner for the round-robin card game extravaganza. The winner usually gets some sort of candy and a weird miscellaneous handful of coins from my nonno’s (grandfather’s) coin stash.
Usually, the way each team plays to get to the finals is absolutely insane and quite confusing, but it always seems to work out. I don’t even remember how this tradition started or even when, but it’s been going on for many years now. This tradition isn’t a typical one and usually ends in some sort of cheating or forfeit. Either way, it ALWAYS ends in tons of yelling.
A few fun stories from previous years including Christmas 2 years ago, when one team of cousins forfeited then spontaneously returned to the competition, causing a lot of drama and anger. Then there was Thanksgiving about 4 years ago, when my team made it to the finals and then lost due to some cheating by the other team, which by the way, was never resolved. A favourite, which has created a trick to use to this day, was when my cousin bent the good 7 (that you need in your pile to get a point) in half, causing it to crease, but still be visible so we always know who has the good 7.
Traditional hobbies are also held in my family, including the typical turkey dinner on holidays, decorating the tree and hanging our stockings above the fireplace on Christmas, and going apple picking around Halloween every year. While I do enjoy these traditions and hold them dear to my heart, the yearly scopa tournaments will always make me smile and laugh and think of my family even when we’re not all together.
Sometimes, non-typical traditions are the ones people keep as their favourite memories because it’s something only their family does. Family is important, and keeping traditions is a new and different way to make fun memories that last a lifetime.