In last month’s note we reflected on the popularity of Tuscany. Why do so many persons visit or long to visit this corner of God’s creation? In these past weeks perhaps another reason has come to mind. Pietro's Book: The Story of a Tuscan Peasant
at first seems to be of local interest for documentary purposes, but easily the reader can appreciate why it has been translated into English.
More than once in the book we have Pietro’s words “My generation has had a unique experience. We were born in the Middle Ages and now have arrived in the age of the computer.” Pietro comes from a line, centuries long, of sharecropping farmers. With Jenny Bawtree’s help Pietro enthusiastically tells his story, even refusing to shorten a chapter on a year’s life on a Tuscan farm. “We have to write everything, everything! Who knows, maybe some future generation has to return to cultivate the land, and how should they know how to do it if I don’t tell them? We could skip this chapter, but they’d be worse off.”
It is a fascinating story of drastic change. One that is almost unimaginable for young persons today. Making the reading particularly enjoyable is Pietro’s humor that permeates the book in spite of all the social (overseers, owners, Fascism) and physical hardships. Compliments to Ms. Bawtree and to Pietro Pinti!
My point in this note is simply that, in this time of growing interest for the earth and for all things natural, another attraction of Tuscany (of Italy) is that the contact with the land is just a generation away. And that generation was much the same as their ancestors 200-300 years ago. Living history, in a way, visible around us, as much in the countryside as in the famous cities: values and mannerisms, many buildings, social tensions, certainly the countryside itself. Much is fading away, but with a little effort it is easy to touch the past.
July for us has been a busy month with single guests and several small groups ranging from our youth camp, to an art class, to persons with special needs, to a church family retreat. As indicated on our home page, for August and September we are offering discounts, because, as has frequently happened, these are slow months for us.
at first seems to be of local interest for documentary purposes, but easily the reader can appreciate why it has been translated into English.More than once in the book we have Pietro’s words “My generation has had a unique experience. We were born in the Middle Ages and now have arrived in the age of the computer.” Pietro comes from a line, centuries long, of sharecropping farmers. With Jenny Bawtree’s help Pietro enthusiastically tells his story, even refusing to shorten a chapter on a year’s life on a Tuscan farm. “We have to write everything, everything! Who knows, maybe some future generation has to return to cultivate the land, and how should they know how to do it if I don’t tell them? We could skip this chapter, but they’d be worse off.”
It is a fascinating story of drastic change. One that is almost unimaginable for young persons today. Making the reading particularly enjoyable is Pietro’s humor that permeates the book in spite of all the social (overseers, owners, Fascism) and physical hardships. Compliments to Ms. Bawtree and to Pietro Pinti!
My point in this note is simply that, in this time of growing interest for the earth and for all things natural, another attraction of Tuscany (of Italy) is that the contact with the land is just a generation away. And that generation was much the same as their ancestors 200-300 years ago. Living history, in a way, visible around us, as much in the countryside as in the famous cities: values and mannerisms, many buildings, social tensions, certainly the countryside itself. Much is fading away, but with a little effort it is easy to touch the past.
July for us has been a busy month with single guests and several small groups ranging from our youth camp, to an art class, to persons with special needs, to a church family retreat. As indicated on our home page, for August and September we are offering discounts, because, as has frequently happened, these are slow months for us.
Comments