Once you are born, once you die — life is singular and irreversible. You have one life to live and one death to die, and neither can be undone or repeated. Used to encourage fully living one's life, and also as a reminder that death is the great leveller awaiting everyone.
Sicilians lived with death as a familiar companion, not a distant abstraction. The annual feasts of the dead, the elaborate funeral traditions, the photographs of the departed kept on the wall beside the saints — all of this normalised mortality as part of the rhythmic structure of existence. The proverb 'na vota si nasce, na vota si mori' was used in two opposite ways: as encouragement to take risks and live fully (you only get one life!), and as a calming reminder to the grieving or the fearful (death comes for everyone, only once, and cannot be avoided). It also served as a social leveller — the prince dies once, the peasant dies once. The ultimate equality is available to all. In Sicily, where social hierarchy was crushing, this democratic fact was worth repeating.
A fundamental Sicilian meditation on the singularity and equality of human life and death. 'Na vota' = una volta. Deeply embedded in both the Catholic and folk traditions of death and dying in Sicily.
Encouraging a friend to quit a job they hate and pursue their dream
— Ho paura di cambiare. — Na vota si nasce, na vota si mori. Non sprecare quello che hai in mezzo a questi due eventi.
— I am scared of changing. — Once you are born, once you die. Do not waste what you have between these two events.
At a funeral, speaking of the universality of death
Era ricco, era importante. Na vota si nasce, na vota si mori — alla fine è andato come tutti gli altri.
He was rich, he was important. Once you are born, once you die — in the end he went like everyone else.
A grandmother encouraging her grandchild to enjoy life
Mangia, bevi, ama, ridi. Na vota si nasce, na vota si mori — goditi quello che hai finché ce l'hai.
Eat, drink, love, laugh. Once you are born, once you die — enjoy what you have while you have it.
Reflecting on regret near the end of life
Ho lavorato troppo e vissuto poco. Na vota si nasce, na vota si mori — se potessi tornare indietro, sceglierei più vita.
I worked too much and lived too little. Once you are born, once you die — if I could go back, I would choose more life.