BALANCE
quantifying every moment that cannot be shared with everyone at one time . Perhaps it is the human desire to belong and to feel settled . Perhaps it is the crackling tension around the world — the constant news of terror attacks , mass killings , rape and sexual assault , dirty campaign tactics , etc .— surely enough to remove any sense of guarantee . With the entire world seeming to dangle from tenterhooks , it has become more rare to find secure and calm moments .
A FORTRESS OF FAMILY
“ How is Siena ? Happy to be back with your contrada ?” my best friend ’ s text read . She had calculated the time difference between the
States and Italy and knew that by now , I was set up in my little flat for the summer .
The medieval Tuscan city is divided into 17 contrade or “ districts ”, one of which ( La Nobil Contrada del Bruco ) baptized both my mother and I as official members . While not a religious ceremony , this induction is historically a reserved birthright for those native to the city . Thus , to be welcomed solely based on a mutual feeling of love and connection with those in the contrada — which , by simplest definition , is a large family — was not only an unheard of honor , but a lifealtering moment .
Thanks to this unique connection and Siena ’ s culture of family , unity , and respect , roaming the ancient roads and being welcomed as a local has been natural since the age of 10 . After every school year in the United States , the medieval fortress and promise of a “ welcome home ” awaited on the horizon of the Chianti hills . Perhaps this is why moving abroad and living alone for the first time at 20 years old was an effortless transition .
Grinning , I hastily typed , “ Never better , saw everyone for dinner and am starting work tomorrow . Better than happy , I feel peaceful !”
That epiphany arrived when I was walking back from the district ’ s headquarters after one of the weekly dinners . As I passed down the cobblestone streets , I realized that here — a place