We woke up up
today to the sounds of birds chirping and a brisk breeze flowing through the
open windows. After a simple breakfast (cereal, yogurt, granola, fruit, bread
and local jam) we proceeded to the meeting room for our first lesson of the day
by Dr. Paul on the history of Italy and Casa Cares.
Dr. Paul has
lived and worked at Casa Cares for over thirty years and he spent much of the
morning sharing stories with us about the rich cultural history of the region.
| Dr. Paul sharing stories, humor, and his love of Italy |
He spoke about the historical conflicts within the area before the
reunification of Italy. He also discussed how global conflicts around the world
are causing tens of thousands of people from the Middle East and Africa to make
the dangerous voyage to seek asylum in Europe – with Italy as the front door to
the hope of a new life. As we travel to the ancient cities within Tuscany, we
will likely see immigrants selling wares and begging for money, which will give
us a glimpse into the impact of this immigration crisis.
Over the past
few years, Casa Cares has opened its doors to some of these immigrants to live
and work as volunteers and begin to create a life for themselves in an
unfamiliar land. This is exactly what Casa Cares has been doing for decades.
The mission of Casa Cares is to serve as a gathering place for diverse people
and groups, many of whom have donated artwork, books, and their talents to Casa
Cares after spending time in this special place. We saw the fruits of these
labors as Dr. Paul took us on a tour of the guesthouse and property to help us
learn more about the rich history of Casa Cares.
| View of Casa Cares Villa from the Garden |
| View of Casa Cares Villa from the Road |
| Counselor's View of Italy Participants in the Newly Renovated Chapel/Theatre |
We enjoyed lunch
after the house tour (salad, pasta, fruit).
| Dr. Thomas speaking about Balance and Wellness |
Then we attended a presentation by
Dr. Pat Thomas about Personal Wellness
and Balance in Our Lives. Dr. Thomas emphasized that very seldom do we have
2 weeks to ‘take stock’ of our lives like we have during this time at Casa
Cares. She encouraged us to take this time to pause and take care of ourselves.
To “slow down, relax, and think about your life.” In order to help us begin
this process, she provided us with a wellness assessment that measured multiple
different areas in our lives: cognition,
nutrition, body use and physiology, sensing, connectedness with others,
emotions, sense of purpose, and self care and choice. There were two
recommended activities provided to enhance each of these areas. We were given
time to go off by ourselves and spend time engaging in 2-3 of these activities
and then we came together to reflect on this experience with the larger group.
During this workshop, Dr. Thomas gave us permission to take time to consider
important aspects of our lives. This was such a refreshing way for us to begin
our journey together at Casa Cares.
In between
sessions, we had breaks with coffee, tea, and cookies. This time was really
wonderful to pause, get some sunshine, catch up on the internet, and reconnect
with others.
Dr. Remley was
the next presenter and he shared with us about his view of Culture and Counseling in Italy. One of the Italian volunteers,
Andrea, was also there and chimed in to answer questions about life as an
Italian. He explained expectations surrounding food and eating – and there are
certainly lots of guidelines (eat olive oil, drink wine during meals to enhance
the food flavor, etc.) They typically spend Sundays with their families -
cooking, eating and enjoy one another’s company. They don’t eat at restaurants
as often as many Americans – the best cooks in Italy are the mothers and
grandmothers – where “cooking is love.”
In Italy,
education and healthcare are provided free of charge. Many Italians live at
home until they get married, and if they do marry, their family often provides
them with an apartment/home of their own at no cost. Students who attend higher
education typically attend the free university closest to their home, so they generally
don’t accumulate any debt – instead they save their money.
I can’t help but
think about how dramatically different this is than our U.S. society – where we
finance our education, mortgage our homes, use credit cards to buy what we
want. We work to earn money so we can pay off our debt – and most of us remain
in debt for much of our lives. This impacts the way we work, spend, and
experience life.
We relaxed after the
sessions, enjoyed dinner together, and watched the sunset. After dinner, Dr.
Paul gave us an Introduction to the Italian
Language just in time for our first trip to the Chianti region tomorrow
where we will visit Greve and San Gimignano.
| Dr. Michel, Katie & Cara at Casa Cares |
