Chapter One: Summer in Veglio

Two of our volunteers from the music and acting troupe

With so many activities this year, I thought I would write more short updates on our experiences.

We arrived in Italia on Wednesday afternoon.  Smooth flights from LAX, through New York and onto Milan.  I had the bright idea of a new train right to Domodossola that turned a few hour trip into, let’s just say much more.

We finally settled into the house, which for the first time, we have our bedroom ready, two bathrooms and the beautiful new(600 year old) kitchen.

What we use to turn one piece of beef into two!

Our workshop starts next Tuesday so we have been crazy getting the house and property ready.  We have volunteers from a local art and theater group who are helping out which is great. 

Today was a strange day.  While Linda and I were catching up on sleep, one of the young bull cattle that grazes the hillsides tripped on an old stone terrace and proceeded to roll down the hill…a quarter mile down the hill. 

So, a frantic race to quarter the animal and haul the meat up the mountain ensued.  We now have the head and four parts hanging in the cellar awaiting a visit from the butcher to finalize the preparation. 

Some of you may remember the new painting that hangs in the old church by Fredy Buchwalder. The painting depicts the Madonna, baby Jesus, Saint Mark and another Italian saint.  There is a “sister” painting that was deemed too controversial to be placed in the church so we are putting that painting in the house.

Andrea called to say that we should walk down and pick up the painting.  Good idea, but a few details that added complexity. “Down the hill” to Fredy’s is about one mile.  Secondly, the painting is about 4 feet by 6 feet.  Lorenzo, the leader of the theater group, and I ran down the hill to meet Fredy at his studio.

Temporary Resting Place for Madonna

We then proceeded to carry the Madonna di Veglio up the gravel road…one mile up a pretty steep slope.  We tried many different techniques to handle her with care. Finally, we took off our shirts and piled them on our heads. From there, Madonna went on top of our heads, balanced rather precariously.

The “Pilgrims” arrived safe and sound.  With the warm weather, we have been eating under the stars.  A wonderful meal followed this crazy day with songs in French, Italian, English and local dialect being sung until midnight.

In the morning, we pick up Alexandra at the airport.  Just a few more days til our guests arrive.  Hopefully, the bull parts will make their way to the locker soon!

Pazzi Americani...Italian-Americans Hosting Restoration Ag Workshop!

Linda and I Checking Out the Field Clearing

So what are a bunch of Americans doing in a little, rural village in far northern Italy? Veglio is a world away from Orange County or Chicago, but every summer you will find us working, laughing, eating and sharing here.

My wife and I have a passion for healthy food, restoration of the land, family and Italy. My grandfather was born in the ancient house that hosts the workshop, and we have been reconnecting with the important root that has existed in this soil for over 500 years.

Our Clan Making Fresh Pasta

From our first steps on this land eight years ago, we are now joined by our children, brothers, sisters, cousins, old friends and new. Our dreams and sweat are flowing to help breathe vitality once again to this perfect example of a sustainable village. 

For the Restoration Agriculture workshop, my wife Linda, our oldest daughter Alexandra and I will be sharing our home, cooking and experiences in living a Vita Mista….a life split between the modern urban life and one grounded  in the land and traditions from past centuries.

We will be joined by our local Italian family as well as various “collaborators” from across Europe and Italy.  Linda is a passionate coach and student of holistic health and nutrition. Alex is a writer and marketing professional from Chicago who is a leader in helping the non-profit and corporate community service efforts. I am involved in various business and technology ventures in addition to helping young food and ag entrepreneurs. 

Looking forward to seeing you on the mountain. Salute!

A Walk with Papa

My biological father left before I formed any memories of him.  He was replaced by an abusive stepfather who only much later mellowed into a sweet, but broken old man. My mother struggled with her own demons of anger and mental illness. 

Growing up, encouragement and guidance were in short supply.  Fear and criticism were the primary themes.

My maternal grandfather “Papa Tuna”, with roots in this gritty but beautiful village of Veglio, was a legend in my mind.  He named me for himself after a long, unproductive debate amongst my parents. He took me fishing, showed me the cows, pigs, rabbits and chickens that provided for our extended family. He introduced me to the wonders of coffee and dark chocolate and those awful candy cigarettes that were mandatory for any child of the 60’s. 

He died when I was seven, the result of too much free time in retirement that was occupied by drinking.  He was a pioneer with a kind and generous spirit.

I sought acceptance and praise in many forms.  Sports, sometimes school but most of all in work. It was fleeting and I put way too much of my identity into the work of the moment.

Later in life, I have been blessed with great friends and  mentors.  People who are there for the good and the bad.  Who help each other most when the chips are down.   I felt the power of an “atta boy” and really honest acceptance.  And in advice and perspective even when I didn’t want to hear it. 

 

I took a walk with Papa this week. Our hands were clasped behind our backs just like he did and I do. We looked at the new roof, the kitchen the fields that we are clearing.  We sat in the church and looked up at the white dove and the blue and fading ceiling.  I asked him if I have done ok.  He smiled and winked but I could not hear him. 

So for now, we will keep at it.  And I will do my best to encourage and guide and help the young people in my life. 

Ultimately, we are helping to build something for this next generation who are being called back to the land and a deeper spirit of community.   

Learning to think like an Alpini

I have always been a coastal guy.  Born in San Francisco, raised on the California North Coast and calling Orange County my home.  Perfect weather, laid back, the livin’ is easy.  But the older I get the more I feel the call of the mountains and the challenges and intrigue that they hold. 

This summer, we had the chance to spend more time in the mountains than in the past.  To listen and learn from those who have made a life where others have found it too difficult.  One afternoon, we decided to hike up to a lake about 6,000 feet up in a place called Agaro which is in the Val Devero in Northern Italy. 

The welcoming committee

Originally a small but bustling village settled by Germans(known as Walsers) 500 years ago looking for a more independent life, its nature had been changed when a hydroelectric dam was built in the 1930’s.

The ensuing lake left a rim of terraced pastures and ten or so mountain huts that were available for the taking.  Some industrious farmers knew of the history of the Walsers who learned to manage the ecosystem of small pastures that were rich with grasses and wildflowers in the Spring and Summer.  Elaborate systems of paths and pulleys had been built to move the cows and hay around each field and level so that each patch of nutrient could be captured. 

We came upon an older man and his wife who had been spending their summers here for the past 50 years.  Aldo, as we soon learned, was a master cheese maker who brings his cows up the 15 miles from  

the valley to spend the summers.

Class in session with Aldo

The cows did not just graze, but were hand milked twice a day.  And with that milk, cheese was made painstakingly by hand without the aid of electricity or running water.  But with the wisdom of many ages, the old hut carved into the mountain to keep cool, with just a little stream running in a channel in the floor for cooling. 

"Mrs Aldo" can be seen in the house entry

Today, cheese like this is prized and sells for as much as $50/pound in the finest shops around the world because you can taste the flowers and the new grasses along with the pure water that nourishes the cows. 

This doesn't happen in Chicago

People like Aldo know that each blade of grass, each flower, each summer moment is a valuable resource to be captured and used.  And that this cycle of the season, far from pressures of the digital world, holds a grace and richness that cannot be found in the industrial world.

Aldo has trouble walking now and cannot make the full 15 mile walk with the cows. That task is left to his wife who not only brings the cows but supplies that are needed for the summer.  Aldo catches a ride in an old Fiat and walks the last mile in.  A partnership that has stood the test of time.

I hope that this way is not lost forever with the passing of the generations.  Incredible lessons that we need as we seek to manage a world with less water, scarce land and the need for healthier food.

Sometimes boulders, sometimes pebbles

One of the things that I am learning as I get older is to think longer and wider.  When I was young, it was all about what I could achieve with my own hands or my own brain or through trying to control a specific outcome. 

But something happens along the way when we realize that not only can’t we truly control much in this life, but the only lasting impact comes from the exchange of ideas.  The germination of these ideas and the nurturing of them in our relationships with our children, our friends and the people we are fortunate enough to mentor and serve in our work.

It has often been described as dropping the pebble into the pond and then seeing the ripples of water as they make their way out.  Both Linda and I are at a point in life where we are dropping more pebbles than hauling boulders.  Linda with her passion towards health and wellness, me in my mentoring of young entrepreneurs and also in our sustainable farming work in the US and of course in Veglio. 

And while we constantly struggle when the outcomes are not immediate or do not look exactly as we envisioned, it is rewarding to see the positive impacts around us.

So it is with our Italian work as well.  When we first started nearly seven years ago, there were really no signs of development in our little village.  More ruins that were collapsing,  a water system in dire need of repair and no one interested in living there other than a few people who were looking to hide out for a few weeks out of the year.  In our own family, there were many more doubts than words of support.

But then with each ton of stone that we cleared and each wall that was resurrected, we started brainstorming.  How could we clear another piece of land and make it available to a young farmer?  Wouldn’t it be great if the old church was repaired and opened up to use?  We better clean up the old bread oven and make sure it can be used.   And then more land, and another building that could be an art studio or an architect’s office or a restaurant.

So here’s to the little ripples that are working their way to shore.  The old church has been cleaned up and a new altarpiece is under construction.  Our oratorio which is some 500 years old hosted a holy concert this past Friday April 25^th.  This day is to honor St Mark, the patron saint of our little church and similar celebrations have been occurring throughout Italy for centuries

Leonardo's Dream

We are excited to have two new neighbors.  A wonderful German family of eight who are growing a garden, raising chickens and cows and also contributing with their music and woodworking.  And Renzo and Bruno from Milan who have been looking for an ancient stone house to restore and call their own.  

Renzo is an architect and a teacher who has bought the little blue house that sits about the bread oven. Work is already underway and they are looking forward to hosting many of their friends from the city who will bring new perspectives as well.

Our farming work is just beginning to take shape. Arianna and Sofia planted a biodynamic garden this Spring and are working on a course that can be taught to others throughout the region.  Beyond organic and taking full advantage of the rich ecosystem that is found in these mixed forests of chestnuts and larch.

Some of you may remember my brother Ken’s little accident off the stairs of a little house a few doors down.  Leonardo, a young Ossolano from a farming family, has decided to buy it and turn it one day into an osteria. 

Early Spring 2014 Festa

The whole area is also becoming a favorite picnic spot for young and old alike.  Fresh air, the mountains, music, food, laughter and ideas.  A fertile environment for certain to gather and debate and dream.

We will keep dropping those pebbles, despite the fact that sometimes they do not reach the shore and sometime the rain comes and floods our efforts for a little while. 

Nothing that is worth doing can be achieved in our lifetime;
therefore, we must be saved by hope.

Nothing which is true or beautiful or good makes complete sense in any immediate context of history;
therefore, we must be saved by faith.

Nothing we do, however virtuous, could be accomplished alone;
therefore, we must be saved by love.

No virtuous act is quite as virtuous from the standpoint of our friend or foe as it is from our own standpoint;
therefore, we must be saved by the final form of love, which is forgiveness