This morning at breakfast Stella asked me if today was Tuesday. With some hesitation, I tell her today is Wednesday. Oh, she says Luca arrives today! I was almost hoping she would forget because it’s raining. Miraculously, by midmorning the rain stopped, the clouds cleared and yesterday’s severe weather predictions were …history. My commitment for the day fell through so, right after lunch, Stella and I went grocery shopping at Esselunga. The store was nearly empty and she and I had a good time yucking it up and giggling up and down the aisles. For someone who hates grocery shopping as much as I do, I’m amazed at how much fun it can be. And, of course, I bought more cashmere socks. As we left the parking lot, I accidentally called Pietrabuona “Casabuona” (good house) and it struck me that I really feel like this is home.
We came home to find the exterior wall of the house covered in stink bugs (cimice in Italian). Hundreds of them! I quickly unloaded the groceries and ran upstairs to close my bedroom doors & windows. They were inside the house as well. Stella and I spent about an hour filling 3 jars of alcohol with just the ones we caught on the first floor. UGH! We took a break to have our usual afternoon tea and cookies before she left for the airport in daylight. I made sure she took her beloved newspaper and made her promise she would wear her seat belt.
Then I tackled my bedroom which had its fair share of stink bugs, too. I don’t know how I am going to sleep tonight, knowing they are lurking behind the curtains, between the radiator slats and any other creepy place those creepy bugs can hide.
——————————————————————————————————————————
Changing the subject only drastically, some time ago, I watched a video of Andrew Garfield talking about the grief he felt when his mother died. It is far more eloquent than anything I could say and profoundly accurate. Here it is:
https://edition.cnn.com/2024/10/08/entertainment/andrew-garfield-all-there-is/index.html
I also came across this quote from an article written by Samantha Joseph: “Now it’s time to find out who I am. To make the most of each new day I have. To bring purpose to my loss and grief. To love other people and to know they love me back. To love myself. To live, for both of us.”