1986: My Happy Life in Provence

Chapter 507 Wonderful Childhood Memories

Zoe poured drinks for herself and Sandrine, pretending to listen patiently:
"Looking forward to your story."

“The women at the handicraft cooperative are so kind. Knowing that Bruno is often away on business and I have to take care of two children on my own, they take great care of me. They not only bring me fresh vegetables and fruits that they grow themselves, but sometimes they will also cook for me and the children before leaving. Over time, I learned to cook country food.” Sandrine rested her elbows on the table, and this topic opened her up. “And if I want, I can take the children out for dinner every night and experience the authentic Lourmaran flavor.”

The Lourmaran handicraft cooperative is a gathering place for many women from the village. Sandrine, having worked there for a while, naturally started talking about her life, such as her husband and children.

Bruno's job was unusual, and the kind-hearted women worried that it would be too hard for her to work and take care of two children at the same time. They offered their help in their own way.

The area around Lourmaran is all farmland, and many villagers have the habit of growing vegetables and fruits in their yards, which they send to Sandrine every day.

In small towns, relationships between people are so close that some families see each other for 300 out of 365 days a year, cooking and eating together. But this situation is somewhat 'unfamiliar' to Sandrine, who came from Paris.

The pace of life and friendships in Paris are completely different.

Being fed every day and attending parties every few days—the events of the past month have given her many insights. Life is not just about endless work; there are also mornings spent picking fruit in orchards with the children, noons spent cooking with the women, and pleasant evenings spent chatting with a large group of people about the country, politics, economics, celebrities, and stocks.

“I never imagined I would live such a ‘luxurious’ life in Provence,” Sandrine said happily.

This is incredible.

Zoe was happy for Sandrine's experience, and as she looked at the two girls eager to climb the tree, she said:
"Moving to the countryside not only means that adults can live a 'luxurious' life, but also that children's childhoods are different. Some of my college classmates grew up in the city, and when they talk about their childhoods, all they have to do is watch TV and watch celebrities. But the childhoods of children living in the countryside are so much richer."

Zoe smiled and said:
"If you ask me to tell you about my childhood now, I could talk for a whole day and night without repeating myself. I've known Ronan for so long, and I still haven't finished telling him all my childhood stories."

Sandrine nodded in agreement, then gestured with her chin in the direction her front door faced:

“On your way here, the vineyards, wheat fields, melon fields and orchards you passed by are now the children’s playground. They have fewer and fewer toys that they love, and they just want to go out and explore every day. They have lived here for less than a month, but they have met more children than they have lived in Paris for a year.”

Zoe said with anticipation:
"I think children should have more contact with nature when they are young. Living in the countryside is a great option. We should consider the educational environment when they are a little older."

Sandrine smiled and glanced at Ronan, then asked Zoe:
"You've already started thinking about having children?"

She also saw the ubiquitous "public notices" in the village, and today, as soon as the young couple arrived, she and Bruno offered their blessings.

Zoe also looked at Ronan and said in a light tone:

"Not yet, but I'm really looking forward to it."

While Zoe and Sandrine were talking about rural life, Bruno had already given Ronan some basic information about the forest.

It turns out that three-quarters of the forests in France are privately owned, and Provence is no exception, with a large number of private forest properties passed down through generations.

“Unlike farmland, even private forests are strictly regulated by the Forestry Bureau. Logging and transplanting operations must be reported, otherwise it will violate the national Forestry Law, because forests are strategic resources and are closely related to the living environment of residents.” Bruno became serious when talking about his work, no longer the joking father and husband he used to be.

Ronan learned something new today and asked with great interest:

"From what you're saying, news of the sale of private forests isn't something just anyone can know?"

In any case, Ronan had never heard anything about the sale of private forests from Lulls.

Louis, who works as a real estate agent, has never been involved in this field.

Bruno lowered his voice and said:

“The sale of private forests must also be reported to the local forestry bureau because we have a ‘right of first refusal’, a privilege provision that states that the state has the right to purchase the land at the same price and under the same conditions.”

"It's 'national priority purchase right' again!" Ronan couldn't help but exclaim.

The events that occurred in Gold in February are still fresh in my mind.

So this privilege isn't limited to the arts?

Bruno had heard the farmers recount the dramatic auction at the previous gathering, so he knew what Ronan was surprised about. However, he shook his head and said:
“Our exercise of the ‘right of first refusal’ differs from that curator’s original intention. The state’s repossession of forests is to consolidate forest plots, avoid excessive fragmentation, implement public forestry policies, and protect the environment.”

Ronan gleaned another crucial piece of information:

"Will you buy up all the land that's released?"

Bruno touched his bald head and said:
“Different regions have different approaches, depending on the department’s budget and the leader’s attitude. But in Provence, after I was transferred here, several plots of land were bought by private buyers.”

"Then this piece of land you mentioned—" Ronan's words were abruptly cut off by Bruno.

“From the perspective of consolidating forest land, the Forestry Department should take over this land. However, you also have other important purposes in buying the land. It will become a new experimental forest for the artificial cultivation of black truffles in the future, which is also one of the Forestry Department’s businesses. If we exercise our privileges to take over the land, it will inevitably be unable to become an experimental forest. So, theoretically speaking, you have the opportunity to buy a part of this land.”

"But the prerequisite is that it must become an experimental forest?" Ronan asked with a serious expression. "It needs to be the kind of forest with the involvement of the Provence Truffle Research Center?"

Bruno nodded and said tactfully:

"That's right, that way the chances will be much greater."

Ronan sensed the difficulty in Bruno's words.

His good friend genuinely wanted to help him, but it wasn't an easy favor to do.

Ronan thought for a few seconds, then continued to ask:
"How large an area does the buyer want to sell this time? What is the price?"

Bruno just said that 'Ronan has the opportunity to buy part of it,' which indicates that the private buyer is selling a considerable area of ​​forest.

Bruno pouted and said:

"A full 40 hectares, the seller is in a great hurry to get rid of it, the price is only 5 francs per hectare, but the condition is that it must be bought in one lump sum."

"40 hectares?" Ronan exclaimed even louder. The entire Lourmaran area only has about 60 hectares of forest; how could 40 hectares be in private hands, and by just one person?

"Do you know who the buyer is?" Ronan asked curiously.

Does Lourmaran have some 'big shot' he doesn't know about?

Bruno calmly shook his head:

"I don't know, that's not important. What's urgent now is that you need to get the experimental forest settled as soon as possible so I can add you to the list. Time waits for no one."

Ronan frowned and asked:
"But the buyer says they want to buy all 40 hectares at once. Is it okay if I buy it with you?"

Bruno waved his hand and said:

"There are plenty of solutions. That person is in such a hurry for money, how could he turn down money? We'll just give him the money for 40 hectares in one lump sum."

the other side.

After chatting about rural life, the women then moved on to the topic of children and began talking about their own childhoods.

Sandrine, who grew up in Paris, was very curious about what Zoe's childhood was like.

Sendlin's two daughters were also listening to the story.

But the two children didn't have that much patience, and after listening for a while, they went to play in the mud in the grass.

Sandrine looked at her two daughters and said with emotion:
“They are much happier than I was when I was a child. They can eat different things every week, and everything is the freshest. They can be self-sufficient in everything except beef, seafood, bread and dried goods. They don’t have to go to the supermarket to help their parents grab the things that have just been put out.”

Sandrine's words reminded Zoe of something else from her childhood:
“When I was little, before I was about 10 years old, I could eat my fill without leaving the house.”

"Hmm?" Sandrine looked over curiously. "I understand your mother can bake her own bread, but doesn't she need to buy meat? Or do you raise livestock for food?"

The villagers have limited resources to support themselves, so they must go out to buy things at least twice a week.
“No, none of that,” Zoe recalled. “Back then, fishermen, butchers, and bakers would regularly appear in the village, pushing their mobile stalls along the streets to sell things.”

"Really?" Sandrine imagined the scene in her mind and thought that if that were the case, rural life would be even more interesting.

“Really, the baker would appear every morning, the butcher on Sundays, the fisherman on Tuesdays, and the grandpa who sold high-proof distilled liquor would appear on Thursday evenings. The cart loaded with dried goods and candy would come once a month—” Zoe recalled with a smile, “Back then, every household would have the dates these vendors would come marked on their calendars. On the days when the candy cart was about to arrive, the roadside would be filled with children from morning till night, clutching coins and looking on with longing eyes. Ah, those were such fun times.”

Zoe was once again immersed in the happiness of her childhood, but after a few seconds, her tone suddenly turned somber:
"But these mobile stalls disappeared in the 80s."

The inland hills of Provence are small and scattered, with villages located in hills or valleys far from towns. After World War II, roads were severely damaged, and transportation was very underdeveloped. Public transportation was not formally established until the 21st century.

There is a market culture here, but in small villages like Lourmaran, markets appeared very late, and there are countless villages in the same situation.

For a long time after the war, rural Provence suffered from a lack of supplies and low car ownership. Many elderly people and housewives found it time-consuming and laborious to go to the nearest market to buy groceries, which led to the emergence of the mobile stall culture.

When Zoe was a child, the market culture was already coming to an end. Even earlier, it wasn't just fishmongers, butchers, bakers, and liquor vendors pushing their mobile stalls; there were also vendors selling salt, sugar, coffee, fabric, and tools. The older generation called it an 'open-air market,' which shows how big it was.

In the late 70s, with the popularization of cars and bicycles becoming affordable for every household, coupled with the road upgrades in Luberon, these products of the era gradually disappeared. However, those stalls will surely remain in the happy childhood memories of many Provençal people.

Zoe was saddened because she had experienced it firsthand, but Sandrine's tone was even more downcast than Zoe's.

"Ah, if only we had these mobile stalls now."

"Why do you say that?" Zoe emerged from her childhood memories. "It's very convenient to go to the market now."

Sandrine sighed deeply:

"But bread is hard to buy. Once the tourist season starts, there are long lines at the bakeries from morning till night. And the bread in the grocery stores isn't very good. I've been driving to Mena Village to buy bread lately. I buy a whole bagful at a time. Nothing beats freshly baked bread."

Lourmaran only had one bakery, Alana, which used to be enough.

However, as the old town's residential area was upgraded into a food street, tourists who went to Alan's place to buy bread made up a larger portion of the population, and villagers who wanted to eat bread were squeezed out to buy it from the neighboring village.

Although the drive isn't far, the happiness of being able to eat freshly baked bread is gone.

"What are you talking about?" Bruno and Ronan ended their forest conversation and joined in on the women's topic.

Sandrine repeated her complaint:
“I envy Zoe when she was a child, she had a mobile bread stand that came to sell bread every day. Now it’s so hard to buy bread in Lourmaran that I have to bake my own bread.”

“Mom only makes country bread and toast!” Sandrine’s eldest daughter immediately protested. “But I want ladder bread.”

Their youngest daughter wiped her hands with a green, ugly doll:

"I love bacon bread, garlic bread, and baguettes—things my mom doesn't make!"

"Alright, you two have had enough fun." Sandrine was a little embarrassed by her daughters' blunt revelation. She pushed her two daughters into the house, "Go take a bath and go to bed."

"Goodbye, pretty sister!" The two girls waved goodbye to Zoe with reluctance.

"Goodbye, Brother Ronan." They continued to say goodbye to Ronan, but their tone was perfunctory.

“Uncle!” Bruno adopted the air of a father.

I'm only 10 years older than Ronan, so why is he the older brother and I'm the father?

"Alright, alright, why get angry with the child?" Ronan clinked glasses with Bruno. "Keep drinking, Uncle."

Don't make things difficult for the child, I'll just have to suffer a little!
(End of this chapter)