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Finding Hestia, connecting to the soul of place

Keep your face always toward the sunshine —
and shadows will fall behind you.

                                                                           ~  Walt Whitman

Sunflower

It’s my birthday week and I’ve had a few things on my mind: that I’m closer to sixty rather than fifty, that we arrived on the peninsula 15 weeks ago (where did the time go?), how house projects always take longer than you think, and about Hestia, the goddess of hearth and home and finding the soul of place. 

A birthday is an important marker, a date that lets you know another year has passed, a time to celebrate the person you’ve become. But it’s also a moment to look to the year ahead. A time to reflect on what’s important, to have a vision for the next twelve months. It’s been such a busy three-and-a bit months, I sometimes have to remind myself to sit and just do nothing. Because of this, I’ve been musing on the values of the goddess Hestia —  about making time and space for quiet reflection, for musing, for pottering.  I’ve also been thinking about connecting to the spirit of my new place in my quest to create a sanctuary which embraces creativity, peace, and love. 

We all want to be connected to a home, a community, a small world of our own. It’s a basic human need. But connecting to the spirit of place? Perhaps it sounds a little woohoo but according to poet, writer and traveller, Linda Lappin, there is a creative force inherent in the land known as the genius loci, translated as the ‘spirit’ or ‘soul of place’. 

The soul of place
Linda Lappin’s excellent creative workbook to help me find the soul of place

I’ve been reading and working through the creative exercises in Linda’s fabulous book, The soul of place* to help me conjure my own genius loci.  According to Lappin, the Ancient Romans perceived it to be,

an entity residing in a site and energising it.  …a guardian spirit with its own personality able to interact with human beings.

I love the sound of this concept  as I believe you can find the power and magic in a place if you take the time to attune to your environment. 

According to Linda, finding the spirit of place includes using all your senses:  seeing the patterns, feeling the textures, the smells, the light, feeling the air moving around you, the ground beneath your feet, hearing all the sounds — in your natural environment. It’s also about being conscious of the history of the landscape and reflecting on how you fit into this space, this location, this community. Connecting identity and place. 

What better way to discover all of this, than to create a garden? 

So far, we’ve done little except clean up, prune back, and clear away debris in our sloping backyard.  Preparing the canvas for the next stage. 

A huge undertaking on an acre of land. But we are planning to work in the permaculture tradition of zones, beginning with Zone One — the area closest to the house. Although Zone One encompasses the area all around the house, we are focusing on the backyard, the space which we use most.  

A few weeks after we moved in, when some of the ugly overgrown mess was cleared away, I planted a summer vegetable garden — tomatoes, aubergines, cucumbers, pumpkins and squash, as well as varieties of spinach, peas, lettuce, rocket, bok choy. A little excessive, I know, but I was keen to have some summer veggies.

Well, there’s been success and failure. More failure than success, I’m sad to say. The spinach, which had an initial growth spurt lost its tenacity and is now limping along. The peas and lettuce withered in the succession of heatwaves, chillies are growing in fits and starts, suffering in the poor soil and the bok choy and rocket died as seedlings. 

pumpkins growing
Pumpkins growing well, loving the heat and sunshine.

The pumpkins, however, loved the heat and there are a couple that are almost full size. The tomatoes are staggering slowly to a size we can finally eat (I thought I planted large Grosse Lisse tomatoes but these are cherry size), and the slender Lebanese aubergines are ripening. Tiny cucumbers are finally forming after my encouraging talks, but the dahlias are refusing to grow taller than 30cm, but I’m still hoping for a growth spurt before the cooler weather arrives. Amongst all the failure though, there is a fabulous success story.

Sunflowers. 

Sunflowers growing
Creating a garden is such a rewarding pastime, especially when you are gifted with the friendliest sunflowers

I’ve always loved them and planted seed for the first time ever, and they are flowering! I have large sunflowers and also a dwarf variety which are the first to open their sunny, friendly faces to the sun. So beautiful! 

And a little more success: herbs — parsley, mint, tarragon, basil, thyme, oregano, lemongrass and chives are growing — which are staples for my cooking. But there were a number of failures here too, but I’m okay with that (well, a little sad); I had to remind myself constantly that this is a temporary vegetable patch. I also see the error of my over-enthusiasm. Perhaps it would have been better connecting to the spirit of place, to find the magic first. But we will replant once our plan, which amore has just finished after lots of walking the property, measuring, and looking for boundaries, is put into action.

Gulf St Vincent
A hot summer’s day exploring my stretch of coast on a quest to find the spirit of place, the genius loci. 

Now, it’s all about the senses, becoming attuned to my environment. Knowing the direction of the wind, where the shade falls in the afternoon, mapping the existing structures, large trees, paths and driveway (new gravel which is keeping the dust down, yay!), scowling at our neighbour’s ugly carport which he put up a couple of weeks after we moved in. I’m taking notes on all of these and more, taking pics and of course, drawing up a dream list for the garden. Most of all, I’m paying attention as I experience this outdoor space and hoping for a little magic as we conjure the genius loci.

My sanctuary embraces the interior spaces as well. My kitchen, a place for creativity, for gathering, for sharing food, is central to this story. It’s the interior Zone One, if you will. And this is where Hestia, the goddess of hearth, home and family resides.

‘Hearth’ comes from the Latin for ‘focus’ — a centre of interest or activity, it’s a place where family gathers, and symbolises the heart and soul of the household. It’s a fitting place to begin our renovation not just because it’s the heart of our home. There is an oven which doesn’t come to temperature and takes twice as long to cook anything, there’s very little bench space for prep, an unfinished wall, and the darkness of the space is depressing. A few essential bits that need fixing but I’m grateful that amore has the skills and has measured and drawn a plan (with my input, of course!) for this space as well. 

It’s an exhausting activity, planning a space, isn’t it? For the kitchen, after what seemed like endless online research, I came up with a shortlist of appliances. But when we went to a large store to feel and touch these metal must-have labour-saving devices, that shortlist flew out the window. The salesperson extolled the virtues of other brands, showed us the shortcomings of our chosen appliances and promised discounts. 

Sunset on the Fleurieu Peninsula
On a deck, grateful for a  peaceful end to the day that was chaotic, stressful, and seemingly endless.

After more than an hour we exited the store, our fuzzy cottonwool brains overstimulated by the features of shiny new ovens, the benefits of induction cooking and the ten cycles of the perfect (and most expensive) dishwasher, described in detail by our helpful assistant. And why are there so many different range hoods, sinks, taps? And still, there are more decisions to be made — colours, door profiles and handles, tiles, splash backs, lights . . . 

If you’ve ever renovated any room, you know how stressful this part of the process is. I wish someone would wave a magic wand and we could bypass this step. But go through the process we must, if I want my sanctuary. 

Creating a sanctuary
Although it needs work, I want to enjoy this room more often. It has view of the hills and the ocean, it’s a place to relax and daydream — a sanctuary.

I know I’m waxing lyrical about a sanctuary, but your home — whether it’s a room in a house shared with others, a rented house for two, a sprawling farmhouse with children running around, a mansion, or a building ready for renovation like ours — is an essential symbol for your soul. It is a place to feel safe, to be yourself, it’s a haven from the stresses of work, and a place to shut out the world when you need some relaxation.  I didn’t have a space to call my own for two years and although I’m loving having this unloved haven, I want to make it REALLY my own. So I’ve invited Hestia along to help me.

flower circles in the garden
Turning their faces toward the sun. Symbols of Hestia are everywhere in my garden.

According to Greek mythology, the goddess Hestia (Vesta to the Romans) was central to Greek and Roman life. She is said to give the house its soul, to imbue the house with spirit and provide the link to the earth, to nature, to community. She also provides safety, security, serenity — serenity being the word that drew me in. The circle is a symbol of Hestia, also the ancient symbol of Mother Earth, of unity, togetherness and connectedness — all good omens for finding the genius loci.

Hestia was the quiet goddess —  she stayed home keeping the fires burning, she cared for others, and provided a sanctuary for anyone in need who knocked at the door. I’d like to think that my home will be a haven for all my friends and family too.

A time for yoga
Yoga and meditation at The Beach House every week

In the year ahead, I look forward to some Hestia time – pottering around, moving a piece of furniture, sitting, writing, daydreaming, practicing yoga. I just need a new kitchen first.

What makes your home a sanctuary? Please leave me a note in the comments. I’d love to share what’s special to you about your home.

Colleen

 

 

   * I receive a a few cents if you buy a book following the link in my post. 

The foundations for an Italian summer

 

Loganberries ripening for my Italian summer
Loganberries ripening

As I said in my last post,  I’m planning to live like an Italian this summer.  This means preparing the foundations  — planting and nurturing the fruit and vegetables that we will be eating this season. The garden is bursting with new growth. The fruit trees — apple, nectarine, fig, pomegranate, apricot, lemon, and the vines —grape, passionfruit, berry and kiwi are showing signs of a great harvest.

Let’s hope (speriamo!) my green thumb endures . . .

 

Radish seedlings - for an Italian summer
Radish seedlings

 

Freshly planted tomatoes - perfect for an Italian summer
Freshly planted tomatoes

 

Spinach, a must for an Italian summer
Baby spinach

Planting the foundations for an Italian summer

In order for growth and progress, it’s necessary to begin with good foundations. So it is in the garden. New vegetable beds have been created, the soil has been enriched, seeds have been sown and planting has begun!

Some of the summer vegetables I’ve planted:

  • pomodori (tomatoes)
  • melanzane (eggplant)
  • cetrioli (cucumbers)
  • lattuga (lettuce)
  • ravanello (radish)
  • barbabietola (beetroot)
  • peperoncino (chilli)
  • rucola (rocket)

 

Herbs and flowers for an Italian summer
Herbs and flowers for an Italian summer

Mine is not a dedicated orto (vegetable garden) as I love flowers too. It’s a cottage garden and the vegetables and herbs —basilico (basil), timo di limone (lemon thyme), origano (oregano), salvia (sage), rosmarino (rosemary), aneto (dill) and prezzemolo e menta (parsley and mint) have to live among the roses, begonias, geraniums, hollyhocks and daisies.

Sage seedlings ready to be planted
Sage seedlings ready to be planted

Spring is in the air, but summer isn’t far behind. Over the next few months, we’ll see how my foundations for an Italian summer bears fruit.

Looking forward to un raccolto abbondante (a rich harvest!)

Colleen

 

 

PS: Do you grow your own fruit and vegetables? What’s in your garden?

Marvellous Mantova

I love places that have an incredible history.
I love the Italian way of life.
I love the food. I love the people.
I love the attitudes of Italians.

                                    ~ Elton John

Palazzo Te, Mantova
Palazzo Te, Mantova with its beautiful frescoes

Mantova is a beautiful city just 40 minutes by train from Verona. Many people bypass this city but it is well worth a visit if only to sample the specialty of the region, Tortelli di zucca con burro e salvia a pasta dish prepared with pumpkin, served in a light butter sauce with sage… delicious!

Tortelli di zucca
Tortelli di zucca

After lunch, wander through the three beautiful piazzas which are adjacent to each other. Across the piazza Sordello you’ll find the Palazzo Ducale which was home to the powerful Gonzaga family for more than 400 years.

Palazzo Ducale, Mantova

The palazzo has around 500 rooms, internal courtyards and beautiful gardens. Although many of the rooms are closed there are wonderful galleries as well as the beautiful tapestry room and a mirror gallery. The lifestyles of the nobility in medieval times must have been sumptuous!

Gallery, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova
Gallery, Palazzo Ducale, Mantova

If gardens are your thing, hop on the city loop bus or take a 25 minute walk to Palazzo Te, a beautiful rennaisance building with extensive gardens.  The amazing frescoes, especially in the Sala dei Giganti (The room of the giants) are a marvel to behold!

Palazzo Te, Mantova
Palazzo Te, Mantova

The city itself is small enough to explore on foot and there are many beautiful buildings such as the Rotonda di San Lorenzo, built in the 11th century and the Teatro Bibiena, a fabulous example of rococo architecture and the theatre where the 13-year-old Mozart once performed. 

Gardens surrounding the Palazzo Ducale, Mantova
Gardens surrounding the Palazzo Ducale, Mantova

Marvellous Mantova, well worth a visit.

Buona visita! 

Colleen

How to get out of the Tuscan sun

It’s June, and in Italy that means summer…and that means hot and humid! I had been looking for a shady spot outdoors (not my balcony, although it’s pleasant enough), somewhere green. I Googled ‘gardens in Lucca’ and up popped the Palazzo Pfanner. ‘Beautiful, but difficult to find’ was the recommendation in TripAdvisor. I looked it up on my map and decided to find out for myself. After a 15 minute walk along the wall, there it was! The view from the wall was inviting so, I paid the entrance fee – yes there’s always an entrance fee – and spent the following couple of hours in this beautiful green oasis.

Enjoy… Isabella

View of Palazzo Pfanner from the city wall

View of Palazzo Pfanner from the city wall

 

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