It has been rather busy since returning to San Diego; a Pfizer convention, guests for 8 days,Steve’s dad needing him on the Fourth and him not being home, etc, so it has just been the last couple of days that we have been unpacking, and sorting our souvenirs and small gifts. And our memories. They are not so easy to put back on the shelf. Do we want to? What do I miss the most?
What I miss is rediscovering my husband in so many little ways. In Montalcino we got to play “house”. Shop, cook, wash dishes, and delight in the discoveries we made each day. Read books, watch movies on the computer between 
us in bed on “movie night.” No distractions, settled in, drinking wine, making new friends, being of small service, and sharing the immense sense of marvel. Boy did we fight too!
Trying not to fall into old patterns and roles, still hurting from failures, and sometimes thinking the only thing we had in common was the kids. Choosing to love, remembering how to love, loving from the head when the heart forgot how. Vowing to change and be different, and making progress . OK, too deep.
I loved having company come. How honored I was to have someone come so far to share this. And we were only too eager to share what we had found.
Cooking Italian style, lots of Jug wine and cheese on a terrace with a million dollar view. Scarves, market day, Duomo’s, Easter week, 8 of Maggio, church bells, finding the small treasures of a small town, great ravioli, poppy fields, crunchy underwear, shutters thrown open to greet each new day!
And how humbled I felt that some dear people would read my frequent ranting on my travel blog and let me share this all with them from afar. Thank you.
I was blown away by the faith of Christians through the many centuries who went on crusades, spent lifetimes building Abbey’s, Cathedrals, walled-cities, who dedicated their lives to sculpting masterpiece, painting ceilings, writing music that glorified God. Sure ,there was greed and self-interest, but you could tell there were hearts who swelled with the love of their Lord to dedicate their lives to doing what they thought was His will. That faith really reached through the centuries and grabbed my heart.
I confess my “walk” with the Lord has been a little distant of late, maybe less intimate, because of the enormity of expressions of others that make my meager efforts to serve seem so meager. Why would the God that inspires the Pieta, want to listen to my jibber jabber ( but He does, so i’m working on this).
But WAKE UP Italy and the rest of Europe! How sad to see the catherals locked and shut down. Meager attendance, Easter habits, faith as an old persons’ panacea. They are not smarter because they have put their faith on a shelf. They are missing the Glory, the faith-dimension that is the only thing that makes this world make any sense.
Thank you Jesus, for Father Piernino, Giovani, Miranda, Juonpaulo, the monks of St. Antimo and those who still burn brightly. We pray for revival.
So much for the rawness of 3a.m. self-examinations.
Leonardo di Vinci
What great fun, and how humbling to have good freinds join us here in Italy!! We love having them here and their support in our explorations of Tuscany. Great meals, great wine, and great fellowship. They see things we don’t see, and explore things we might be a little timid to strike out on our own and do, and join us for Buon Pasqua!! Today was Sienna, tomorrow is tours of wineries, and Wednesday is Florence!! Praise God for the Gift of Friendship!!
The town is bursting with tourists and family that have come back home to visit for the holiday. We felt very lucky to find room at a restaurant we wanted to try after the first one was all booked. What a meal! I had homemade ravioli in burro as primo piatta, Steve had zuppa di funghi, Mary and Ron had crostini . For our secundo piatta, Ron and I had roast chicken in brunello sauce and sauteed spinach with lemon, Steve had cingheri stew (wild boar). Mary had boar in padetti noodles and a side of white beans. A bottle of Rosso di Montalcino topped it off. 
While walking off our meal, several were tempted to have a gelato chaser to a great meal!
We live in a beautiful hill town, filled with buildings of stone, erected over 500 years ago (obviously some more recent, but still OLD). The earthquake struck a similar village on the other side of the mountains. We really can identify with the scenario of the belltower collapsing. The belltower in this town is right outside our door, but it was retrofitted 8 years ago . 
Our life has slowed down. We take a long walk and explore and then the belltower tolls 100 times at noon to alert the inhabitants that it is Lunch Time. We have a bigger meal at that point (and a nap or read), followed by more walking and a little wine-time. We have to use an internet cafe while we are here so we are trying not to impose (tho’ we do have to buy something each time we are here). 
the top level).
We attended a catholic mass at 9am, Palm Sunday. Everyone got olive branches (