1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 436 The Strange Magic of Provence
Ronan planned to make wontons for Thor with broth. Although Thor got ready in less than 3 minutes, breakfast couldn't start yet because the soup wasn't cooked properly.

While waiting, Thor and Ronan made various delicious juices together, and then Thor learned to wrap wontons from Ronan.

Thor is very skillful, especially when it comes to cooking; he can learn almost anything in no time.

However, Thor couldn't focus entirely on cooking; he was very concerned about the time involved.

Ronan wouldn't let him look at his watch, so he looked at the clock on the wall, only to discover that Ronan's house didn't even have one.

“I remember you used to have a wall clock,” Thor recalled.

“Yes, it used to be there, but we took it down.” Ronan tasted the soup and thought it was about right. “For the previous few months, it had no power, and we didn’t even notice. So we just took it down and hung something else on it.”

Thor asked in a probing tone:
"But how can we know what to do next if we don't know the time?"

Ronan explained as he cooked the wontons:
"We just don't care about time. It's not that we don't know how to tell time. Although we don't have watches, we can tell exactly what time it is just by looking at the sun outside because our biological clocks are very regular. You might find this very unbelievable, but that's how life is in Provence."

Thor continued to ask Ronan:
So, do you think this is good or bad?

People living in Paris simply cannot imagine what life without time is like.

The customer's call will come promptly at 8:30.

The supervisor stipulated that the items must be handed in before 6 p.m.

The supermarket always closes at 8 p.m., and customers are not allowed to enter even if they are one minute late.

If you haven't finished get off work by 10 pm, you'll have to take an expensive taxi home.

As the wontons were cooked, Ronan placed the bowl in front of Thor, carefully instructing him:
"It's very hot, so don't rush when you eat it. I don't know if this is good or bad, but in Provence, you have the right to enjoy your breakfast slowly without worrying about being late or getting fined if you eat two extra minutes. If you want, you can even eat for an hour, and no one will rush you."

Ronan smiled and handed him the spoon:
“It’s true, my dad’s sign that he finished breakfast every day was when he finished reading the entire Provence Daily.”

To adapt to the 'Provence' rhythm, Thor ate more than 30 small wontons, interspersed with three large glasses of juice.

"Your stomach is very Provençal," Ronan said, clearly joking. "I'll prepare more tomorrow. Do you still want Chinese breakfast, or should I make you French?"

Thor drank the last sip of soup and said obediently:
"I'll make you breakfast tomorrow. I picked some strawberries later, and I'll make you sugar and butter pancakes."

Sugar-cream pancakes are something Thor has been making for Ronan since last year.

Ronan nodded:
“Okay, you can do it tomorrow, and the day after tomorrow we’ll go to the market in Mena Village to eat something fresh.”

We'll play for one more day, and the day after tomorrow we'll be going to Mena Village for the bread competition.

Thor smiled happily.

Something new, something new again, Provence is so interesting!

But then, as if remembering something, he suddenly glanced at his watch despite Ronan's objections, and then let out a muffled groan:
It's almost 9 o'clock!

Oh no, I've been eating for too long, am I going to be late?
Ronan calmly tidied up the bowls, carried them to the sink, and as he passed the sleeping Matthew, he didn't forget to nuzzle its head with his foot.
"It's okay, go have a cup of coffee or play in the yard for a while. By the time I finish washing the dishes, it will be almost time."

It's no exaggeration to say that Thor had an incredibly pleasant and comfortable morning at Ronan's house.

In Paris, it's almost impossible to have both a good meal and a good rest at the same time.

The only slightly 'distressed' thing was that he was worried he would miss the group strawberry picking activity.

Ronan's friends are all very interesting, especially those who are good at talking. Although Thor seems to prefer being alone, he secretly wants to be with everyone.

After such a 'long' morning, have Ronan's friends finished picking strawberries and gone home?
Surprisingly, when Ronan leisurely strolled around and introduced the surroundings, leading Thor to their destination for the day, there were only four or five people there.

What's even more surprising is that these people weren't picking strawberries; they were doing something else.

A few hundred meters from the strawberry farm, Pierre and two other farmers were chatting with a beekeeper.

This beekeeper is the same one who helped Ronan clean the wasps out of his electrical box last winter.

Beekeepers in Provence, like 'shepherds,' migrate their hives according to the flowering season.

In April, before flowers such as lavender bloom, beekeepers usually move their beehives to the vicinity of orchards.

“You’re saying your bees are on strike? That’s impossible,” Pierre said, biting his cigarette butt. “Bees are the only residents of Provence who are punctual. How could they possibly go on strike? I don’t believe it!”

The beekeeper said in a fit of rage:
"It's true, these bees haven't been collecting nectar for three days; they've been staying in the hive all day."

"Why?" Thor quickly covered his mouth.

When the farmers turned around, they found that two new members had joined their 'meeting'.

Ronan also leaned over and asked:
"Why? Why aren't they collecting honey anymore?"

When the beekeeper saw Ronan and Pierre appear together, he said in a accusing tone:
“My bees are protesting because Soto sprayed pesticides on his apricots. I’m here to check on this strawberry farm. If they’ve sprayed pesticides here too, I’ll have to move the bees somewhere else!”

In Provence in 1987, pesticides were far from being used on an industrialized agricultural scale, but a small number of people had already begun using them.

Grape growers use low doses of pesticides to control pests and diseases.

Farmers who grow vegetables and fruits use pesticides to ensure yields.

However, farmers who grow lavender and olives use very little pesticide because their crops are less susceptible to pests and diseases, and they can rely on crop rotation and manual pest control.

In Lourmaran, there are significant differences in attitudes toward pesticides among farmers and those involved in agriculture.

Some farmers believe that pesticides are a lazy tool that will damage the soil.

Some people believe that new pesticide technologies should be accepted, but dosage should be carefully controlled.

Clearly, Ronan and Thor encountered two 'neighbors' with completely opposite attitudes—the beekeeper had come to hold them accountable.

Pierre, a proponent of pesticides, vehemently explained:

"This strawberry farm wasn't sprayed with pesticides, but Soto's land is quite far from yours, and the dosage wasn't large, so it shouldn't be his problem, right?"

The beekeeper also argued his case logically:
“You don’t understand bees at all. Bees know Provence better than any of you. They know which hillside has the best rosemary, which oak tree’s resin gives the honey a smoky flavor, and where the lavender is most abundant. Even if the disgusting smell of pesticides can be heard 2 kilometers away, it will make them so sick that they can’t eat for a week. I swear it’s because of pesticides!”

“Impossible, impossible! Tell me more about the bees’ symptoms,” Pierre said, frowning. The two argued for nearly half an hour, neither able to convince the other, both sounding quite reasonable.

The situation seemed to be at a stalemate, but the surrounding 'environment' kept changing—more and more people were gathering around.

It was because the members who came to participate in the strawberry picking group activity arrived one after another at roughly the same time.

Faced with the unexpected situation, no one showed any anxiety or impatience. Instead, they all sought out shady spots to "keep a close eye on" the situation, and some even joined the debate.

"Do you even know anything about bees? Why are you getting involved?" Cotillard pulled the female writer Paulette out of the group of farmers.

Paulette pushed Cotillard aside and squeezed in again:

"Does it matter? I'm trying to understand the logic behind the farmers' arguments; it's a valuable learning opportunity."

"In that case, I'm in too. I support Pierre!"

"I think it's a problem with pesticides; those bees have clearly been affected."

"How could that be? Pesticides aren't a recent invention. Didn't those bees collect nectar before?"

"Come on, don't go in yet, let's 'discuss' this first."

Outside the crowd, Thor covered his mouth and laughed non-stop.

He loves watching Provençal people 'argue'; he watched it non-stop last year.

Pierre couldn't argue with the beekeeper, and in the end, he angrily threw away his cigarette.
"Take me to your hives, I want to see how they're going on strike!"

"Fine, I'll go now!" The beekeeper turned and left, his manner aggressive.

The rest of the group followed without a second thought.

“Shall we go harvest honey? That sounds like a lot of fun,” Cotillard said, looking at Paulette.

"Then I won't have strawberry jam for lunch today. I'll have some fresh honey to dip my bread in." Paulette changed her mind.

"What's the difference what I draw? I'm not drawing strawberries today, I'm drawing bees instead." Vivian picked up her board and left.

Ronan wanted to ask Thor what he wanted.

This guy kept saying he wanted to pick fresh strawberries to make sugar-cream pancakes.

But when I turned around, I found that the person was gone.

Turning my head again, I saw that everyone had rushed to Pierre's side.

Thor excitedly waved to Ronan:

"Hurry up and keep up!"

Ronan, who was at the back of the crowd, couldn't help but laugh out loud.

Thor's personality is perfectly suited to Provence.

Fifteen minutes later.

Pierre and several other farmers and beekeepers argued heatedly about whether pesticides affect bees, their faces turning red with anger.

A dozen meters away from them, Vivian was closing one eye, holding a pencil and comparing it back and forth, trying to determine what she wanted to copy, looking completely detached from worldly affairs.

Beside Vivian, Cotillard and Paulette ran around in the wildflowers like they were filming a romantic drama, constantly complaining about why they hadn't brought a camera.

In the background scene of the 'idol drama', Ronan and Zoe, wearing protective suits, are separating honey from beehives.

Behind Ronan and Zoe, Thor, also wearing protective gear, was carefully observing the striking bees.

To be honest, Thor is terrified of bees.

However, when he noticed a bee landing on his bare skin without biting him, he couldn't resist the temptation and took the first and second steps.
It can only be said that the allure of new things outweighed his fear of bees.

“They really do look like a ‘protesting’ crowd.” After observing them carefully for a while, Thor laughed like a cow again.

Although he didn't get to pick the strawberries he'd been longing for this morning.

But Thor remembered the pleasant scent of the wildflower patch.

I remembered Pierre's analogy that bees are 'the only punctual residents of Provence'.

He remembered the appearance of the yellow and black little guy that had landed on his exposed ankle for a long time, but had not stung him.

“I think I know what the ‘almost’ principle is now,” Thor said to Ronan with a smile on the way back.

“That’s really hard to explain, isn’t it? You can only understand it by experiencing it yourself.” Ronan shrugged with a smile. “Because ‘almost’ involves not only time, but also space and even content.”

Thor said cheerfully:

“Provence is truly magical. If the same thing happened in Paris, I would think it was a waste of time, but in Provence, I find it enjoyable, and even have a strange sense of ‘this is how life should be.’”

Ronan smiled and waved the honey bottle in his hand:

“In Provence, people spend their whole lives learning how to ‘waste time,’ and most of them learn it quite well.”

Without strawberries, there are no sugar-cream pancakes, but Thor happily accepted the bottle of honey:

"Let's have something with honey for lunch today."

Such fresh honey should be tasted immediately!

He smiled and tapped the bottle:

"After coming to Provence, my eating habits changed inexplicably. I ate more vegetables and more fruit, but I didn't do that in Paris."

Ronan flashed a bright smile:
"This is another 'magic' of Provence. Don't worry, I'll show you over the next few days. Here, you can eat very well even without meat."

(End of this chapter)