A Slow Tuscan Summer

A roundup of my much-welcome relaxed summer in Tuscany

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“In order to seek one’s own direction, one must simplify the mechanics of ordinary, everyday life.”

Plato

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Sitting here in this luxurious solitude as my baby naps, I fight back tears. This is our first summer here in Tuscany, Italy. My family of five spent the last two summers in Paris and the south of France, putting out a perpetual series of fires due to our unexpected and very sudden move from New York City. Because we do not yet know for how long we will be here or why God has called us to the quiet countryside of Chianti, we live our lives very unplanned, month to month. And so we haven’t made any grand plans to go on an excursion anywhere. Unlike the last two summers, this uneventful summer has brought a much-needed calm to our lives. A sense of sobering relief is washing over me, hence the tears. 

Okay, enough tears, and onto some fun. Here is a roundup of my slow summer life under the very hot Tuscan sun.

“We haven’t had gelato today, Mommy.”

This is what my 5-year-old munchkin usually says when —you guessed it— we haven’t had gelato for a day or two. We discovered a pasticceria/gelateria (a shop that sells pastries, coffee, and gelato) in Florence that makes raw, dairy-free, and gluten-free pastries and gelato. Being that I am a health junky, I can not express to you the sheer joy that this has brought to our lives. The decadent milk used is freshly homemade daily from raw almonds and cashews. Instead of the white refined sugar that gives all of us an unwelcome sugar high, raw coconut sugar is used as the primary sweetener. The audacity of these people! I actually have to enforce a budget for this place because it’s just too good to settle for one serving of anything. So I can’t blame the little one for keeping track of our daily gelato consumption because, truthfully, I do, too.

“I guess we should go to the beach…?”

Have I mentioned to you that we have become terrible at planning lately? I say this begrudgingly as I am a recovering type-A planner. If there’s anything that the last two years of living in Europe with three young children has taught me is to be flexible. Because we live in the Chianti wine countryside, we are surrounded by nothing but vineyards and land. So, after a few weeks of the blazing summer sun, the once green grassy hills have turned into dry golden hills resembling sand dunes. A few consecutive days of this sight makes us inevitably parched and sweaty, longing for the cooling refreshment of acqua. 

The western coast of Tuscany, home to some of the most beautiful beaches in Italy, is 1.5 hours away. Taking this long odyssey to the spiaggia (the beach) with two meals worth of homemade healthy snacks and my restless 1-year-old in tow is an ordeal. At the end of each ride, I am bone tired. It takes me several days to vacuum all the traces of sand in my home and mentally recover just in time for the question to rear its head again —“I guess we should go to the beach today”? Gah!

Stone Fruit Galore

Italians eat seasonally. As an American who used to buy strawberries year-round (I know, I know), I find this fascinating. Presently, stone fruits like peaches, apricots, nectarines, and plums are in their full glory here and can be found everywhere, including our own backyard. And guess what —they’re wonderfully sweet, unlike the versions we eat in America that are deceptively beautiful and shiny but not at all tasty.

This week I look forward to baking a scrumptious apricot and olive oil cake using locally sourced einkorn flour as a healthier alternative. 

Only Linen, Cotton, and Straw Please

I promise you, I do not mean to sound like a snob when I say that I can only wear natural, breathable fibers like linen or cotton in this heat. It’s the only way I can survive running around with my little ones. My usual summer uniform is a linen top with white cropped trousers or a linen dress. Straw hats are a must for me as I don’t wear much sunscreen in order to soak up as much immune-boosting vitamin D as possible. I also love wearing a pair of classic espadrilles or Greek sandals, depending on the day’s outings. 

Dressing like this in our Tuscan village means I look like a tourist, as the Italians in Siena do not dress seasonally. You can even spot them wearing sweaters on some days—I’m still trying to figure this out. Stay tuned.

My Takeaway

It is tempting to look at the eventful lives of others and compare it all to our seemingly uneventful summer so far. But you know what? There is a season for everything under the heavens. Rather than wearing ourselves out from travel as we have in the past years, we are leaning into God’s plans of rest. We’re trading in hurried days to watch out for fireflies, enjoy breathtaking sunsets, grill smores over a bonfire, and, of course, eat lots of gelato. And, oh, what a lovely summer it shall be.

In green pastures he makes me lie down;

to still waters he leads me;

he restores my soul.

Psalm 23: 2-3

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Poetry

Summer Sun

by Robert Louis Stevenson

Great is the sun, and wide he goes
Through empty heaven without repose;
And in the blue and glowing days
More thick than rain he showers his rays.

Though closer still the blinds we pull
To keep the shady parlour cool,
Yet he will find a chink or two
To slip his golden fingers through.

The dusty attic spider-clad,
He, through the keyhole, maketh glad;
And through the broken edge of tiles,
Into the laddered hay-loft smiles.

Meantime his golden face around
He bares to all the garden ground,
And sheds a warm and glittering look
Among the ivy's inmost nook.

Above the hills, along the blue,
Round the bright air with footing true,
To please the child, to paint the rose,
The gardener of the World, he goes.

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Playlist

I’ve curated a Vintage Italian Summer playlist for you. I hope you enjoy it while making dinner or taking a long road trip somewhere magical! Please leave a comment to let me know which tracks you like.

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Everything in bold and underlined is linked for you! So click away.

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