Noi Siamo Enemici

From day one, Tiziano and I were enemies (in Italian, 'noi siamo enemici'). Every time he saw me, Tiziano would say, 'La cavia!' and point at me with such amusement. We scrambled to translate 'la cavia' with a dictionary and found that it means 'guinea pig.' Each day we greeted each other with a smile and “enemico!” And although I knew nothing of Italian, and he knew nothing of PB&J or baseball, we understood each other.

At lunchtime, Tiziano would plop down onto his chair in anticipation of his well-earned meal. Without hesitation he always made sure his guests were served first and served plenty. 'Prego! Mangare per mio enemico!' Food for my enemy. With smiles we exchanged pasta bowls.

The lunch table was always surrounded by the bombastic arguing of Tiziano's wife, Gemma, and his four daughters—all loud, Italian women with definite opinions on how things are. Tiziano would stay silent as the five female trumpets blared on and on. We rarely spoke with words. More often it was in short glances back and forth. I'd glance over, and he'd have this look on this face that said, 'see what I have to deal with every day?' or 'why me lord?!' On the rare occasions that things got out of hand, Tiziano would only have to say three or four words to silence the symphony of roaring females.

Tiziano is the engine of Tenuta San Carlo. He reigns over the crops and live stock, horses and swampland. All politics are understood. All methodologies rehearsed, practiced, and set to motion. Weather is not a simple nuisance, but a necessity and determining factor to the prosperity of the farm. Because of this, Tiziano spends his life listening.

If there was ever a man to learn from, it would be my enemy Tiziano. He lives by laughter and works till he is contently worn. For Tiziano, generosity is determined by his ability to see the worth in all things. Nothing is wasted. He leaves no careless words cast upon the ground.

With his smile, Tiziano opened our hearts to what we were to learn from the farm. And as the life of the farm, trees, and animals became our teachers, Tiziano loosed the chains that kept us American. And only with the deepest respect can I proudly say, 'noi siamo enemici.'

Tiziano e Wes: Enemici