In The Garden of Plenty

Sauro Testi is not one to sit still. He's sort of a legendary local figure deeply involved in projects that serve the most vulnerable in our community. I first met Testi when he was mayor of the city of Bucine, a small town in Valdambra, the Ambra Valley, on the road to Siena. He'd appeared in one of our documentaries for a major news network that profiled several villages were atrocities, really reprisals, against civilians occurred in the summer of 1944. The program is till show inside a memorial where on of the most brutal attacks against civilians occurred as the front swept across Tuscany. Not long after the show aired, Sauro bestowed on my filming partner and me honorary citizenship. During the ceremony, I recall how emotional I became.

Sauro moved onto the non-profit sector working for a national organization Koinè that provides social services to vulnerable populations. We'd already done a promotional video for a working farm that supplies fresh produce to a Relais & Chateaux situated in a carefully restored village in the Chianti Classico, in which local farmers pass on their wisdom to adults with disabilities, many of whom go on to find gainful employment in the agricultural sector. Fast forward to 2024: Sauro's creating a similar project at a disused farm with several acres of land to plant crops. Would be interested in producing another video to promote it? We had such an amazing time filming with program participants and mentors that we jumped at Sauro's offer. The Aia (farmyard) di Ramarella (the area's name) provides the same kind of agricultural training to disabled adults where they grow all manner of vegetables and herbs year-round. The farm's deeply intertwined with the surrounding community. Locals stop by frequently for a chat or to buy a case of produce for a nominal price. The little store sells honey, skin ointments, and dried herbs and flowers. Residents tend to a petit assortment of barnyard animals with frequent visits by delighted schoolchildren. For those living on the farm (men only), a family of goats, assorted ducks and chickens and one lovable donkey offer companionship. The community organizes events during good weather where residents help prepare simple delicious served at long wooden tables where Tuscan conviviality, funny and sometimes a bit profane, is in full force. The word for it is schietto and it suits perfectly.

The woman who stables her horses at Ramarella, Paola, offers equine-assisted therapy to children and adults; with her straightforward approach and fresh natural style, we became instant friends. I easily envisioned her on her horse galloping down a beach between Carmel and Santa Barbara.  Spending a day filming with the affable Paola and her mature beyond her years tween as they cared for their horses and after, as took that morning's group through a series of exercises in the white-fenced corral, I understood what it privilege it was to be in Paola's shoes.

It's nearly spring here. Cool nights and days warmed by the sun. The Ramarella farm will be abuzz with activities. Soon 'll be ready to pop down the road for a first taste of spring's bounty