We have been spending our summers in Italy since 1996. It was a grand adventure for the entire family, but for a 9 year old boy, it took on a whole new light. It was a time of enchantment visiting castles and ancient sites, watching the body language of people he couldn't understand, and creating a 'love affair' with a culture who has accepted him with open arms.
Pictured here, Brian is with our right hand man, Dario, who has guided us through the olive oil process and every nuance of what it means to grow, nurture and produce olives....which becomes Il Bel Cuore Olive Oil.
24+ years later, Brian is still learning what it means to be an olive farmer. Dario is still doting over these trees with an ever-watchful eye. This year, during the Covid19 pandemic, Brian was tucked away on our farm safely out of harms way. He was studying at the John's Hopkins University, in Bologna when the virus broke out. Finally realizing this is "no joke", Brian escaped the city just before they quarantined and retreated to his home away from home, in Umbria.
Time was marching on....Dario was doing the annual "potare," pruning the olives, which took almost every day for three months to complete. The rhythm of the days took on a pace that was slower, giving the constant reminder that "Mother Nature" is in charge. While news of the virus continued to spread and create widespread fear and panic, Brian was nestled away in the Italian countryside renewed by fields bursting with poppies, buds flowering on the trees and the promise of a new day, without Covid19.
Spring in Italy reminds us that we are mere visitors on this earth and there is, indeed, another language few people understand. The voice of "Mother Nature". Hers is truly our Creator's voice reminding us that He is with us. Every day, every season, of every year.
Brian, heard that voice during his walks through the countryside on the rambling tractor roads traversing the fields. He felt a religious experience that a 'Spring in Italy' unveils. He took a pause from his busy life, (thank-you corona virus), and returned to the fields where, our man, Dario, was pruning those olives with "Mother Nature" right by his side.