The country resource
Piccoli Comuni (Small Towns), is a law pending to be made operational with concrete facts, otherwise these towns will be abandoned.
Until a few decades ago, these small towns were, “a problem.” Instead today, they are a “resource.” In the middle of the last century, and for a few decades, we have experienced an age of abandonment and uprooting. For some years now, there has been a reversal to the current trends. The first and second generation heirs are back. The countryside blossoms again with cultivation and the greenery of the olive trees have been cultivated again, the vineyards flourish and get bigger with dignity at the right time of year, the black-berry bushes give way to the blossoming harvest like the orchards, irrigated by the waters of the rivers, streams and wells.
Agriculture is rediscovered with its greatness of its beautiful traditions that are centuries-old. In short, the country is no longer a problem, but a “resource:” squares, open spaces and alleys have been brought back to life. The feast of noisy children has started again. The renovated houses laugh at the shawl of flowers on terraces, balconies and windows. The village is brought back to life with the chorus of the religious festivals, by weddings that spread joy, and also on the other hand with the pain of funerals. The warm hospitality of a small community is rediscovered and appreciated, with the amazing heritage of its core values, being aware that here no-one is ever alone, in joy as in pain, in celebration as in sickness and death.
In this way: the town is a resource, since it is at guard to protect the environment, it is a stronghold of a shareholder democracy at the time of excitement during electoral campaigns, in direct contact with Public Administrators. Modern technology along with our wired society have reduced and got rid of distances while new and innovative roads of telework and telemedicine are easily moving ahead, even inside a village room, as long as it is equipped with a computer that is capable of connecting in real time with the whole world. These are the extraordinary opportunities that our towns have, which no longer impose leaving them, but on the other hand give warm sympathy to humanity in the frame of a healthy environment, where water, air, ancestral perfumes, food not poisoned by pesticides, are not an exception but the norm. This is our extraordinary wealth, this is our winning weapon.
This is the reason why children from faraway return. It is for this reason that many rediscover people escaping from the unlivable cities due to the stress and smog, to conquer silence, health and relaxation in the mountains and in the green of the countryside, only a few kilometers away from the sea, while in the sounds of the sea crashing and twisting while hitting beaches and rocks, myths have been told about its ancient history. Precisely for this reason, the small communities must be protected and enhanced, intact in their loveliness, cleanliness, simplicity while also rich in warm values. To do so, it is appropriate, necessary and indelible to INVEST IN CULTURE, in the broadest and most prismatic sense of the term. Politicians have finally become aware of this, even at a national level. In fact it is part of an upcoming law, that defends and protects small towns, which risk being deserted due to abandonment of the population with the consequence of finding themselves in a short time with squares, streets, houses and monuments covered in tall brush. Many have begun warning people that pages and pages of history will be deleted, that agriculture lays on its hilltops, and mountain peaks, such as that of the Umbrian valleys, with its hard times when the streams are dry in summer and muddy in winter, of sheep-farming with herds at the good pasture between the scrub or in the ditches were the road is not used often.
A page in history has been written with the sweats and hardships of many people working, in fact too many days of hard work where only a few, very few indeed, were of celebration like Christmas, Easter and the Patron Saint in the Mother Church among rhythms of out-of-tune songs and prayers being whispered with the comforting blessing of the parish priest and his promise of paradise in the homily; the one written in the square between memories of the military or the grabbing during tressette (an Italian card game) in the bar between cigar smoke and the odor of urine being retained by men and the “chatting” of women after mass in the corner of the alleyways. Since 2013, when the need of keeping traditions alive had become more important and substantial in the numerous conferences and heated debates, with the hope of revitalizing squares, open spaces and streets and seeing houses, squares and churches repopulated had been desired, the law had embarked on an institutional path among uncertainties and rough paths.
Now a line is about to be crossed with a future plan. A large part of poor and marginalized Italy has started to dream of a life in the small villages that were of their ancestors. Those which grow with enthusiasm and have a future in tourism among the local ruins restored with terraces, balconies and windows filled with blooming flowers. The hopes of people are not entirely deceptive when reading the law well, of which I have written below, a part of the most important articles.
ART. 1 “The purpose of this law … is to promote and support the economic, social, environmental and cultural development of small towns, while ensuring the demographic balance of the country, encouraging people to live in these small towns and preventing depopulation, as well as protecting and enhancing the natural, rural, historical-cultural and architectural heritage. This law also favors the adoption of measures in favour of citizens residing in small towns and of the productive activities taken place there, with a strong reference to the system of territorial services, in such a way to encourage and favour also the welcoming of tourists.”
This is the first time that the Italian Parliament has given attention to the most marginalized Italy, emphasizing its values and promising to enhance, “… its natural, rural, historical, cultural and architectural heritage.” After reading the proposal, my thoughts were directed towards the towns of the Cilento region where its traditions of self-sufficient agriculture are still present with the “passolare” to dry the “moscioni” and the ovens of the poor country houses to brown the “split.” For the poor Christians, the “casini” still stand out in the “latifundia” of the nobility, of the census and of the family, which were the vacation spots for the period of the harvest (threshing, harvest, olives, chestnuts, etc.). The tools preserved in the “malazzeni” and almost rusted with the advent of mechanization make one look back on childhood memories from long ago. Gender is looked upon for sheep-farming which see its sanctuaries for milking, curdling and the maturing of cheeses in the “ranches located in the open or in the closed of the “crapa rizzi.” Not to mention, then, the craftsmanship of peasant civilization: the processing of clay for embrices, “tiani” ziri, muscetore, mommole, pacavi, braided, iron beating and the art of embroidery done by mothers and grandmothers armed with delicate tools of the trade (needle, thimble, and scissors). Or the lightness and grace of the poetry of memories for women’s work and the strength and sweat of men’s work. I remember the latter ones every time I come across a falling artifact of the “carcare” and of the “catuozzi” from the charcoal burners. I remember smoking and detecting at a distance with the thread of black smoke in the green of the stain. And there is also a religious memory in the sanctuaries and votive shrines of the countryside that have collected prayers and hopes for a rich year.
However, unfortunately, the data about the depopulation inside Cilento has recently become alarming. An abandonment of the local businesses has been predicted, which will have a devastating effect on the environment and its landscape. This situation has only been delayed thanks to the survival of a generation, which, despite the years, plowing fields and weeds, prunes and sprays, looking at the sky trembling with violent rains and hailstorms, sudden frosts and prolonged droughts have thankfully looked back and remembered the miracle of the buds during the spring, the wheat that makes bread, of the grapes that swell and shine in September, the olives that become filled with sunny moods in Summer and shine in the purple iridescences in Autumn. Perhaps we are on the eve of the announced death of the Georgian poem of Cilento with the natural decline of pruners and farmers that can do everything, good-natured of the Pan of our countryside? I, however, continue to defend that agriculture is a world of great potential and I would like politics, business and the media to work at giving a “cultural imprint” to this sector through integrated initiatives.
It would be a way, but not the only one, which could be certainly effective to motivate young people to return to working the fields.The country resource
Piccoli Comuni (Small Towns), is a law pending to be made operational with concrete facts, otherwise these towns will be abandoned.
Until a few decades ago, these small towns were, “a problem.” Instead today, they are a “resource.” In the middle of the last century, and for a few decades, we have experienced an age of abandonment and uprooting. For some years now, there has been a reversal to the current trends. The first and second generation heirs are back. The countryside blossoms again with cultivation and the greenery of the olive trees have been cultivated again, the vineyards flourish and get bigger with dignity at the right time of year, the black-berry bushes give way to the blossoming harvest like the orchards, irrigated by the waters of the rivers, streams and wells.
Agriculture is rediscovered with its greatness of its beautiful traditions that are centuries-old. In short, the country is no longer a problem, but a “resource:” squares, open spaces and alleys have been brought back to life. The feast of noisy children has started again. The renovated houses laugh at the shawl of flowers on terraces, balconies and windows. The village is brought back to life with the chorus of the religious festivals, by weddings that spread joy, and also on the other hand with the pain of funerals. The warm hospitality of a small community is rediscovered and appreciated, with the amazing heritage of its core values, being aware that here no-one is ever alone, in joy as in pain, in celebration as in sickness and death.
In this way: the town is a resource, since it is at guard to protect the environment, it is a stronghold of a shareholder democracy at the time of excitement during electoral campaigns, in direct contact with Public Administrators. Modern technology along with our wired society have reduced and got rid of distances while new and innovative roads of telework and telemedicine are easily moving ahead, even inside a village room, as long as it is equipped with a computer that is capable of connecting in real time with the whole world. These are the extraordinary opportunities that our towns have, which no longer impose leaving them, but on the other hand give warm sympathy to humanity in the frame of a healthy environment, where water, air, ancestral perfumes, food not poisoned by pesticides, are not an exception but the norm. This is our extraordinary wealth, this is our winning weapon.
This is the reason why children from faraway return. It is for this reason that many rediscover people escaping from the unlivable cities due to the stress and smog, to conquer silence, health and relaxation in the mountains and in the green of the countryside, only a few kilometers away from the sea, while in the sounds of the sea crashing and twisting while hitting beaches and rocks, myths have been told about its ancient history. Precisely for this reason, the small communities must be protected and enhanced, intact in their loveliness, cleanliness, simplicity while also rich in warm values. To do so, it is appropriate, necessary and indelible to INVEST IN CULTURE, in the broadest and most prismatic sense of the term. Politicians have finally become aware of this, even at a national level. In fact it is part of an upcoming law, that defends and protects small towns, which risk being deserted due to abandonment of the population with the consequence of finding themselves in a short time with squares, streets, houses and monuments covered in tall brush. Many have begun warning people that pages and pages of history will be deleted, that agriculture lays on its hilltops, and mountain peaks, such as that of the Umbrian valleys, with its hard times when the streams are dry in summer and muddy in winter, of sheep-farming with herds at the good pasture between the scrub or in the ditches were the road is not used often.
A page in history has been written with the sweats and hardships of many people working, in fact too many days of hard work where only a few, very few indeed, were of celebration like Christmas, Easter and the Patron Saint in the Mother Church among rhythms of out-of-tune songs and prayers being whispered with the comforting blessing of the parish priest and his promise of paradise in the homily; the one written in the square between memories of the military or the grabbing during tressette (an Italian card game) in the bar between cigar smoke and the odor of urine being retained by men and the “chatting” of women after mass in the corner of the alleyways. Since 2013, when the need of keeping traditions alive had become more important and substantial in the numerous conferences and heated debates, with the hope of revitalizing squares, open spaces and streets and seeing houses, squares and churches repopulated had been desired, the law had embarked on an institutional path among uncertainties and rough paths.
Now a line is about to be crossed with a future plan. A large part of poor and marginalized Italy has started to dream of a life in the small villages that were of their ancestors. Those which grow with enthusiasm and have a future in tourism among the local ruins restored with terraces, balconies and windows filled with blooming flowers. The hopes of people are not entirely deceptive when reading the law well, of which I have written below, a part of the most important articles.
ART. 1 “The purpose of this law … is to promote and support the economic, social, environmental and cultural development of small towns, while ensuring the demographic balance of the country, encouraging people to live in these small towns and preventing depopulation, as well as protecting and enhancing the natural, rural, historical-cultural and architectural heritage. This law also favors the adoption of measures in favour of citizens residing in small towns and of the productive activities taken place there, with a strong reference to the system of territorial services, in such a way to encourage and favour also the welcoming of tourists.”
This is the first time that the Italian Parliament has given attention to the most marginalized Italy, emphasizing its values and promising to enhance, “… its natural, rural, historical, cultural and architectural heritage.” After reading the proposal, my thoughts were directed towards the towns of the Cilento region where its traditions of self-sufficient agriculture are still present with the “passolare” to dry the “moscioni” and the ovens of the poor country houses to brown the “split.” For the poor Christians, the “casini” still stand out in the “latifundia” of the nobility, of the census and of the family, which were the vacation spots for the period of the harvest (threshing, harvest, olives, chestnuts, etc.). The tools preserved in the “malazzeni” and almost rusted with the advent of mechanization make one look back on childhood memories from long ago. Gender is looked upon for sheep-farming which see its sanctuaries for milking, curdling and the maturing of cheeses in the “ranches located in the open or in the closed of the “crapa rizzi.” Not to mention, then, the craftsmanship of peasant civilization: the processing of clay for embrices, “tiani” ziri, muscetore, mommole, pacavi, braided, iron beating and the art of embroidery done by mothers and grandmothers armed with delicate tools of the trade (needle, thimble, and scissors). Or the lightness and grace of the poetry of memories for women’s work and the strength and sweat of men’s work. I remember the latter ones every time I come across a falling artifact of the “carcare” and of the “catuozzi” from the charcoal burners. I remember smoking and detecting at a distance with the thread of black smoke in the green of the stain. And there is also a religious memory in the sanctuaries and votive shrines of the countryside that have collected prayers and hopes for a rich year.
However, unfortunately, the data about the depopulation inside Cilento has recently become alarming. An abandonment of the local businesses has been predicted, which will have a devastating effect on the environment and its landscape. This situation has only been delayed thanks to the survival of a generation, which, despite the years, plowing fields and weeds, prunes and sprays, looking at the sky trembling with violent rains and hailstorms, sudden frosts and prolonged droughts have thankfully looked back and remembered the miracle of the buds during the spring, the wheat that makes bread, of the grapes that swell and shine in September, the olives that become filled with sunny moods in Summer and shine in the purple iridescences in Autumn. Perhaps we are on the eve of the announced death of the Georgian poem of Cilento with the natural decline of pruners and farmers that can do everything, good-natured of the Pan of our countryside? I, however, continue to defend that agriculture is a world of great potential and I would like politics, business and the media to work at giving a “cultural imprint” to this sector through integrated initiatives.
It would be a way, but not the only one, which could be certainly effective to motivate young people to return to working the fields.