Olio Caldo: The Rocky Road of Implementation

Posted in Create Sustainability, Featured Articles | 2 comments

Mar 21, 13

By now Olio Caldo is no longer in its initial phase, but in the rocky road of implementing changes and reviewing what needs adaptation. Experiencing this movement from within, I see diverse processes going on.

It is crucial to find the sufficiently big projects to motivate us and manageable enough be concluded in contained time periods. To give you an example, we have changed the destination of living spaces in the house in Prima Stalla, demolishing a wall and giving a Spanish decor design to the walls thanks to the help of an expert friend of ours visiting. After a lots of talk it was liberating to join forces literally opening up spaces. We celebrated this conquest with a Spanish dinner, only three weeks after the previous celebration for Olio Caldo. All of us were proud of the new mosaic on the floor, the artistic finishing, the table decorations. Since Olio Caldo is a damanhurian wide movement with our group being the pioneers, this exchange with the community is crucial; it means sharing enthusiasm, because our conquests nourish hope that this movement of renewal will be successful. I remind you that Olio Caldo has a cultural orientation in self sufficiency besides food. Therefore a Damanhurian restaurant, the quality and care of food, new artistic expressions are all important aspects to get a taste of what we are moving into.

Winter is ending, so we prepare for the growing season. We are a bit late for some things but the delay can be recuperated if we get going decisively. This pressure is constructive, we cannot waste time on diverting dynamics that otherwise might take place. The greenhouses need preparation, seedlings must be put into the earth – and the numbers to feed 500 people are really impressive – only last Sunday we planted 2500 salad plants.

On an individual level, the growth process is intense for all of us. Being almost around 35 people in the house, we are beyond „critical numbers“ and this means a stretch for everyone – not only to contain noise, cooking for 30 people, cleaning shifts until midnight, but also embracing each others weak moments. I have great appreciation for the wisdom and loving frankness manifested especially by our „senior“ Damanhurians, curbing excessive characters sometimes in real time, sometimes sharing two words in privacy, sometimes using roses, sometimes the sword…

We recently inaugurated the new restaurant. It was a tremendous effort, but we are extremely pleased and proud of ourselves. We had many people from the area stop by, the first sunny day in a week, a perfect day. Later at night, everyone was dancing, big smiles on their faces. Yeah! Another milestone conquered with our hands and in our hearts.

By Capra Carruba