So I worked a full day in the vineyard again. This week we are going to be very busy. We had to dig holes, set the rootstock, cover the setting, water them and then fill in the holes. We did about 200 there are 1500 total to be planted.
This is great work. Being out in the vineyard all day is as relaxing as anything I have ever done. The sun sits on your shoulder and breezes dont let it get too hot. Spring is fresh and everywhere you turn there are the seasons colors. Little rabbits darting about in the hedges and sheep in the next farm over voicing their disapproval at anything and everything. (actually the sheep are probably happy as pigs in shit but have you ever heard sheep?)
A horse trail winds its way past our plot, so frequently we get the pleasure of watching a fine cantor. (only English riding here)
I have a thing for the depression era. The music and clothing and attitude as well as the work ethic. Being in the dirt I can slip into a daydream and feel as though I am in the Midwest, tending my land and hoping for the best turnout possible.When the day is done there is a sense of accomplishment. You can look at the vineyard as a whole and have tangible proof of your sweat and toil. The only thing I can see to be different from my mental montage of the Thirties is the lack of stress around being flat broke.
I have worked lots of jobs. Some of my favorites have been bike messenger, warehouse floor man, and racetrack bugler. All three of these offer a solitude most work denies you. That is my favorite aspect of working the land. I can clear my head and discuss, with myself,.... sans mental diarrhea..... any subject matter I would like to know my opinion on. If i need company, I can grab my rake and hoe and cross over the piece of fertile ground to a companion toiling over the same responsibilities I am.
Here is something wonderful about Germany. The first priority is community, companionship, and conversation. Work revolves around those social habits not the other way around. I have more than once been accused of being standoffish because I have a habit of putting my head down and getting the job done. Of course I do.... I am American.... and a New Yorker to boot!! We run around like headless chickens, begging for coin instead of seed. Not here. No way. Speak, relax, stretch, laugh, and have a beer, because the work will get done. It has for years and it will continue to.....and we dont mind doing it, because we do it together.
