Wednesday, March 13, 2013

KENDALL/RAINBOW/JIM/GIO/GOODBYES



Italy Journal
Friday, March 8, 2013

KENDALL/RAINBOW/JIM/GIO/GOODBYES


I had to hurry this morning to get all the ingredients we needed from the store and get back to the house before Kendall arrived. I found the Ecuadorian integrale (natural) sugar at the International Foods store across the street, then I went to the Coop to get the 00 farina (flour), eggs, milk and butter. I was barely back home again before Kendall arrived. She was the leader in making the crust, and she even saved the day after I suggested that we not use all the butter the recipe called for in the crust. I mixed the rest of the ingredients with the KARO SYRUP that Kendall had brought from Canada. We can’t find corn syrup here. Then, we put the PECAN HALVES (did you guess it?) that my son-in-law Arne had given me in California (THANK YOU, ARNE!) all over the piecrust and poured the wet mixture over that. We were all drooling after we finished Peter’s yummy lunch and were smelling that pecan pie! Kendall made me promise not to eat it before our Saturday Supper tomorrow night. I promised, but I wasn’t happy!

Soon after Kendall left to visit some other friends, Ana arrived, excited about the full rainbow in the sky. We took pictures just in time, because the clouds erased the rainbow soon afterwards. We saw the rainbow as a sign to all of yesterday’s graduates that there is definitely hope for a wonderful tomorrow.

Peter was pleasantly surprised this afternoon when our friend and pastor Jim called him from Greece, where he was on a trip with others from the church. Jim was calling to wish Peter congratulations on completing his course of study this year. He had remembered that Graduation Day was yesterday. It was so special and thoughtful of Jim to remember and call Peter. Thanks, Jim. Have fun in Greece.

I spent some time in the afternoon with Giovani, the 16 year-old son of our friends and pasta makers the Grimaldi’s. We were speaking English about Peter’s graduation pictures and the affagato we got next door. He is going to England again this summer for an intensive English course, and he wanted to practice with me. He is such a nice young man, and I really enjoyed our conversation...AND the affagato, of course!

Peter left in the evening to spend a night out with the boys, only to find Francesco having supper with several of the women. Peter had a drink and visited a while, then went to Bar Veneria, where he hoped to find some others who he might want to say “goodbye” to. Our neighbor Alberto was there, and later on Daniel came in, too. Daniel is leaving tomorrow, and it was special for Peter to get to spend some time with him before he left. Francesco, Daniel and Peter were the only men in a group of 25 students in their cohort this year, so they have gotten to be very close. Keep in touch, Daniel and Francesco!

Love to all,

Colleen

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