Collecting Points for Paradise

Hi, my name is Piero and I'm a volunteer at the Arsenale dell'Armonia, which we simply call the Hermitage. I've been coming to the Arsenale for many years, first as a visitor, then to lend a hand since spring 2019. With other volunteers and friends of the Fraternity, I take care of the vegetable garden, the garden, and especially the woods and firewood. Not to mention the orchards, with particular attention to the care and harvesting of cherries, a specialty of Pecetto. It sounds like a lot, but with the help of many, we manage to do everything, or at least the essentials, with a certain calm and serenity... and a few backaches and age-old complaints that are more circumstantial than substantial.

Why do I do this? Sometimes, between sweat and fatigue, I ask myself this question too, but it's only for a moment, and then I answer myself and those who ask me, seriously, yet a little facetiously. The most important reason is that I feel it's right to give back a small part of the good that life, the good Lord, and good fortune have bestowed upon me.

And then, at the Hermitage, it's nice, the air is fresh, you feel welcomed, the company is special, the serenity is at home, and sometimes there's even a drop of prosecco to brighten lunch. Last but not least, and perhaps most prosaic, is that the pay is good—with the current climate, Paradise Points are an extremely precious commodity.

A few curious episodes, I'll choose two among many: when we planted a dozen (small) walnut trees, only to find out via phone call that we'd put too much manure on the roots and had to remove the trees, remove the manure, and replant them. Naturally, the "Boja faus ma 'd pudie nen telefunè prima" (Damn, you couldn't have called first) was a common refrain, but then—afterward—we laughed about it. Or that time I messed up the lawn in front of the balcony with the lawnmower the day before an important event, causing the wrath of the dignitary in charge of the ceremony—luckily, the grass grew back and I was reinstated.


Maria Claudia Brunello
NP October 2025