Discovering Nuggests Of Wisdom

By Carole Bumpus

While finishing the manuscript for my latest book, A September to Remember: Searching for Culinary Pleasures at the Italian Table, I stumbled over a precious gem within one of my interviews—an interview conducted twenty years prior. My initial goal for writing a culinary/travel memoir series was to bring readers a sense of people and place and I had almost missed this treasure. An excerpt from A September to Remember:

“How accepting are the people of your village of Poderi di Montemerano to people coming in from the outside?” I asked Lisa Young, our Tuscan host. We had participated in an amazing harvest festival which hundreds of people had attended as part of an annual celebration. Many, like us, were not from Poderi, and, in fact, a great many were not even Italian.

“I think completely,” Lisa responded, “they are very accepting because they are quite interested in the l’strangiero, or the stranger. They do not create separate categories for the German, the American, and the Florentine—they have a very human, amused curiosity about everyone. They are very welcoming people with an enormous well of hospitality. And that truly comes from the fact that they are only two generations away from people who knew what it was like to live without a money economy and the precious value of land and having their own place. The pride of . . . No, no, it’s much deeper than pride,” she continued as her fingers thrummed against her chin as she considered how to explain the dynamics present in that remote village. 

“For example,” she said, “do you remember meeting Pariso and Nina?”

Both my husband and I looked at each other and shrugged. 

“Ah,” she said with a smile, “they were an older couple, perhaps seventy-five years old and are farmers who live only a hundred yards or so down the road from my house. He is a remarkable old guy, and we made a point of buying fresh produce and everything we could from them.” We nodded.

“Once my son, Niccolo, was told by his second-grade teacher, ‘You all have to go home and interview your great-grandfather and bring your assignment back next week. And you must ask them these five questions: What was your life like when you were a young child? What did you eat? Etcetera. So, Niccolo came home from second grade and asked, ‘Do we have a great-grandfather?’ ‘No, he’s dead,’ I said, ‘He died about fifty years ago.’  So, he went back the next day to report in, and the teacher said, “It doesn’t matter if you don’t have one. Go find one!’  

“So, a few of these poor kids, who did not live with multiple generations, were going around town trying to find a great-grandfather. It was then we decided to go down to interview Parisio. Parisio was very proud to be asked and Niccolo was proud to interview him. Their interaction was absolutely beautiful!”  Lisa beamed.

“Niccolo asked him, ‘Now, what did you buy with your money?’ And, Parisio would say, ‘Well, son, we didn’t have money. No, son, we had no money.’  Niccolò’s eyes widened at this encounter, as these two worldviews collided. My son’s life was centered on a moneyed economy, and even at the age of seven he knew absolutely what he wanted and what he needed. 

“Parisio explained, ‘Well, I would take a piece of leather down to the general store—that was where we ate, met folks, exchanged news and merchandise, and it was also the social center of town. I traded the leather for a pound of wheat and brought it home to make my bread. I would get oil there for trade for some work if they needed anything to be done; it was how we exchanged things. In those days, it was called baratto, or barter.’  

“‘How do you spell that word?’ Niccolo would ask, and Parisio would carefully spell it out for him. So, there was this wonderful exchange about these different eras, and to see that my child could be so fascinated—well, maybe not fascinated, but relating to this wonderful person whom we loved so much and was an important part of our lives and transcribing things that were so incredible. All these were things we had never known about Parisio’s life. 

“The next question was, ‘How did you get to work?’ ‘Well, we walked to work then. We didn’t have bicycles and we carried our spades on our shoulders and walked twenty to thirty miles each day, worked all day, and then walked back home at night. We didn’t have our own land, you see.’”

Lisa continued, “So, that perspective of their history is still very present in their lives. And it is part of that great hospitality that we always felt and still feel when in Poderi. You could never be made to feel unwelcome as a foreigner. Their doors are always open. And, they are very, very amenable to those who are interested in them, because they themselves are interested in other people. Many of them lived in Yugoslavia during the war, or in Germany. They traveled because their government (during the time of Mussolini) sent them out, and you will find Yugoslavian books in their homes although they only speak Italian. The war was a defining event in everyone’s life during those generations.”

That long ago interview with Lisa was priceless. As a writer, it was understanding these ‘defining events’ that made me more aware of my purpose to share the stories I was privileged to hear. The voices that reverberate through the generations guide us even today.

—

SEPTEMBER TO REMEMBER; Searching for Culinary Pleasures at the Italian Table (Book Three) – Lombardy, Tuscany, Compania, Apulia, and Lazio (Roma), Carole Bumpus

Join Carole Bumpus and her husband in Book Three of the Savoring the Olde Ways series as they take you on their first culinary trek through Italy, including regions of Lombardy, Tuscany, Compania, Apulia, and Lazio. Embrace unforgettable characters such as lovely guides Lisa and Margarita, who introduce you to the “true Italian experience.” Sup on traditional foods (cucina povera) including local tortelli, pappardelle al cinghiale (wild boar), bistecca all Fiorentina, pasta alla vongole (clams), or saltimbocca alla Romana.

Sip regional wines, along with memorable digestivos like limoncello and grappa. Find yourself dancing at harvest festivals, climbing through Etruscan tombs, traipsing among Roman ruins, or bathing in ancient Roman termés (hot springs). Climb to the heights in elegant Capri on the gorgeous Amalfi Coast, or to the top of the “holiest of holies” at St. Peter’s Basilica.

Soak up ancient and cultural history in Milan, Firenze (Florence), Amalfi, Pompeii, Lecce, and Rome. Bask in the sun and opalescent waters along the rugged coasts of the Tyrrhenian and Adriatic Seas. And, best of all, capture a rare glimpse into the secrets of the Mediterranean psyche while sharing a good meal with new friends. It is truly the trip of a lifetime.

BUY HERE

Tags: featured, women writers

Category: Contemporary Women Writers, How To and Tips