Myrtle Claus
“Hi, I won't be able to make it to our appointment. I can't leave my village because of the rain.' It also sounds like a rock mush to my own ears. One of the caliber 'accident en route', 'the bridge was open' and 'I had to help a bunch of ducks cross.' But as is often the case with things that are too absurd for words, it is the harsh reality. I really can't leave the village because of the heavy rain showers that have been whizzing down all night.
Living on the edge, literally
Of course my car is not made of sugar and it does not melt in the downpour. And the wipers just manage on the highest setting to give you some view of the road. If you could see the way. Because what is an asphalted cart track on dry days that meanders through beautiful curves through the Tuscan landscape, regularly changes into one large expanse of water during heavy rain showers.
The deep ditches on both sides of the road, which normally look quite harmless, because filled with a lot of greenery and little water, then overflow their banks. And walk over the road during continuous downpours. Which makes driving on the road suddenly for the better living on the edgefeeling. Especially in a literal sense: the chance of missing one of the bends and driving into the ditch is quite high.
Crisis situation
So life in our village comes to a standstill when the time comes again. And we imagine ourselves as on an island, cut off from the turbulent world around us.
Only at the village school does the rain not create a serene feeling. With mainly students who do not come from the village, 'a lot of rain' equals 'crisis situation'. Because: how long will it last? How much falls? Is the water already very high in the ditches? Is there a good chance that the roads will become impassable? And if so, before or after school ends? In general, it ends with a sizzle. If it stops raining, the water will subside in time and everyone can just pick up their children from school as if nothing is wrong.
But it also happens that all students have to be picked up as soon as possible. Many children hope that their parents will not be able to come. Because then the day program takes a very exciting turn. A ride in the large jeeps of the quickly rounded up carabinieri to be dropped off at home. Or an unexpected sleepover with classmates who do live in the village.
Nothing gray and gray, a happy lot
And so we were one of the host families for our classmates that day when the carabinieri decided they really didn't dare take another ride. While it was gray and drab outside, our house was a happy place. Exuberant children enjoying that unexpected day off. They watched movies on the couch, played games, and argued amongst themselves when they got bored. In the evening they fell asleep on the makeshift beds. After chatting for hours and having received a warning many times because it was now really time to go to sleep. And all hoped that it would continue to rain so that there would be another schoolless day.
Falling water level
Fortunately, the rain showers are rarely as extreme as they were then. The water drops again within a few hours and we can leave the village. But how long exactly does it take? There is no level to measure. So we call off the appointments for that day. With a reason that sounds like a mess: "Hi, I'm not going to be able to make it to our appointment. I'm not leaving my village, it's raining.'
Photo above: Wikimedia
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