Sunday, July 25, 2010

The Good Life

I have been overwhelmed with seemingly salient observations about the good life and its' cross-cultural incantations.Sitting with the computer and my second cup of coffee (El Salvador Cup of Excellence roasted to Full City) with the quiet of a Sunday morning, it seems within my grasp to touch the simplicity of our visit to Buoux. As I am invariably reminded with every trip to the Luberon, we choose our life, but we do not choose it in a vacuum. What I am referring to is the cultural enterprise that is our everyday lives. How much do we work? How and where do we do it? Where and on what do we spend our money? Are we secure? I think I embrace the idea of living for the sense of it, the goodness of it, the joy, but after a week of observing the simplicity and the lack of haste, I must question this. Is a mediocre 1.20 euro espresso that is consumed over 45 minutes with my lovely wife in a shabby cafe or at a lovely courtyard table outside the shabby cafe even comparable to the Starbucks on the run? Even if we find the nice spot and sit for a time, can I ignore the din of my fellows? Can I ignore the impatience and the rush?
Much of the beauty of Buoux and its' neighboring villages is the oldness and the comfortable wear they display. They have the patina of years. At home, we feel the need to repaint to avoid something looking run down, but here...
A side "street" in Cereste
I am not wholly naive. I do not believe this is somehow the perfect life. Of course, these folks have their bills to pay. And I was on vacation... But when we sat down to lunch in Goult (see previous post) we did so with the natives and the visitors. A lunch out is a social experience. It is a rest, a chance to enjoy the goodness of food and, in my case, beautiful company. This pace of life easily supports these lingering moments or extended chats, whether it is over lunch or a leisurely afternoon stroll into the village.
The road leading down into the village of Buoux