Homecoming...

I am home again. After weeks of great anticipation and days of uncertainty and frustration with air travel, we arrived in our home in Distomo. It was a beautiful spring day as if nature was rewarding me for being faithful to my annual ritual. Everything was clean, fresh and green as a result of a rather mild and very wet winter. The tulips and crocuses were showing off their bright red, yellow and pink petals. The almond and apricot trees had shed their flowers already--which I regret every year for missing their spectacular display of white and pink flowers. The fig and cherry trees were brave enough to permit some buds to appear on their otherwise bare branches. But what caught my immediate attention were the first buds on the vineyards. You see, this is the event that I have been dreaming about for the past three months. This is the very first step in the long process of grape growing. I will be watching closely every phase of their growth in the next five months.

Oh, I almost forgot to tell you...In the morning after our arrival, I went to the wine cellar to say hello to my wines. I felt my heart pounding as I opened the heavy wooden door. In the dimly lit room I walked along its perimeter and surveyed the bottles nestled in their wooden racks. Then, I went to check the temperature and humidity recorded on a gadget resting on one of the racks. It showed that the temperature had fluctuated between 56 and 56.7 degrees Fahrenheit and the humidity was almost constant at 75 %--not bad for a wine cellar...I was relieved that all was well with my precious friends. We have a lot to look forward to during the summer...