The Village

I love reading novels set in Italy. Novels that describe village life. Nicky Pellegrino is one of my favourite writers and has several based in the region. I love how the village life is described. The Barista knowing the perfect coffee for the day. The descriptions of aromas drifting from the bakeries, the people, the community.

This morning I popped down to my local village. I love my local shops – from the local library, to the boutique shops, cafes, bookshop and bakeries amongst others. It has everything one needs. I went for a mouch around the bookstore, some errands and then to pick up some fresh bread for lunch. I then popped into my favourite bakery for a coffee and warm cinnamon brioche.

The Village was a buzz of people. People back from walks along the beach, heading to lunches, running errands. At my favourite bakery there were a few of us regulars getting our coffee fix and pausing to contemplate the delicious array of baked delights. I bumped into a friend and we paused for a chat. On this sunny day, so many of us had congregated in the village. It was vibrant, it was alive, it was my happy place today.

There’s something to be said for village life. For the vibrancy, the community feel. It’s a precious and rare feeling in the midst of a city. As I drove home invigorated from my short visit out, I realised that in amgonst my city life, I too had the village that these Authors so beautifully bring to life in their writings. It might not be set amongst vineyards and only 20 minutes from downtown Auckland, but it is still a village.

Sometimes we need to look up, look around, to appreciate too that our lives could also be straight from the pages of work of fiction.