Where is the sun?

It seems absurd, but ever since we returned from the desert, almost three weeks ago, we have only seen the sun two days here in Milan. All the others are a long sequence of grey rainy days, depriving color to the parts of the plants that are still alive, colored like a late autumn. It is true that we are in winter and that November is usually the saddest month, but the memory of warm days with blue sky and sun to warm the skin become all-consuming. “Luckily we work a lot” a friend said to me “otherwise how would we support such a climate without going into depression?” It is a sad thought that as an antidote to the sadness we can only work: we are really limited!

Technical limits

Some would think that I let the blog go on vacation however….it was the fault of my computer! A few days ago it decided to have a tantrum and I spent most of my time working on it, trying to convince it to work again. With Max in the USA to celebrate Thanksgiving with Lauren and the computer stuck, it was not a good start to the week!

Finally when it decided to work again, after my rage wore off, which inevitably accompanies this events, I saw what happened in a different light and to justify everything, I hoped to find a reason. Maybe it is not only a machine, I said to myself, also it needs to rest sometimes, since you control the everyday rhythms it is subject to. One thing is certain: the true limits are not in the desert, often we find ourselves confronting them everyday.

Wonderful Evening

The get together last night in Castellanza (VA) of CAI together with the cultural association IL PRISMA (The PRISIM) was a success. The arrival into the splendid Brambilla Plaza, the seat of the Comune, where I affixed my signature on the book of honors was very exciting. Later, more than 200 people, some even standing, watched a presentation of short films on my expeditions and one on Desert Therapy, which raised great interest. There were many questions from the audience, who followed my story very attentively. The evening ended with an emotional moment when Giulia, a woman in the audience who has followed me for a long time, read one of her poems, dedicated to me and to the desert.

Family Celebration

Lauren and Max leave in a few days to go to the US to celebrate Thanksgiving with Lauren’s family. For Americans it is the most important celebration of the year and this year Cynthia and Vic, Lauren’s parents, are able to spend the day with everyone. They are also going to celebrate Christmas that day, since the kids will return to Italy and celebrate the real day with us. We are happy that our Italian family and Lauren’s American family, even with the distance and cultural differences, have in common this sense of celebration where we hold tight to traditions and it is wonderful that Lauren and Max share these values. Joining together to celebrate is important and a tradition that the youth must continue: a precious occasion to see each other again and share moments of peace.

Flavors

What do you do on the sad, rainy days of autum? One suggestion is to spend time cooking and making jams and preserves of every type, with fruit and vegetables, or even tuna under oil or olives in brine. Together with Lauren, who also loves to cook, in our free time we make lots of jars, always trying to create new tastes. The last creation? Pineapple jam, wonderful with cheese and the favorite of Oscar.

At Christmas our jars become wonderful gifts to give to our closest friends, some of whom were also with us in the desert. Those who participate in Desert Therapy in fact have already tasted our home-made jam, durng breakfast every morning seated comfortably on cushions in the sand: an extra sweet treat.

Journey of the Spirit

Graziella, one of the five participants of Desert Therapy called me: wanting to let me know what happened after her return and her words confirm that what I had hoped for also happened to her. She told me about the change that happened inside of her, and the benefits that she discovered to face everyday. She left during a difficult period, with high stress and tension and after the week in Egypt passed she realized that her attitude had completely changed. “I am always calm and serene also if the same problems exist, I am able to see them with detachment and face them with a smile on my face” she told me on the telephone. “I don’t understand what happened, but just to think of the desert makes me feel good.” What joy to know that Desert Therapy is truly working!

MEDIA

Walking together in the desert allows a lot of time for chatting with the friends who accompany you. It is interesting to exchange opinions on various topics and to know the opinion of people who live in different places. Giovanna who has lived in Stockholm for more than 20 years, described for example how the Italian media is considered abroad. The most striking thing from our media is the negativity of the news, and the tendency to transform every event into a tragedy. It digs up suffering and pain without respect for the persons involved and dramatic events take up all the space on our news at the expense of the positive events which should take the spot-light, at least to generate more optimism in the public. Thinking about her words, I have to agree: after a fatiguing day of work, with many problems inside and outside the house, to be bombarded with catastrophic news can’t be good. And so, relive the desert!