22 Comments
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Etta Madden's avatar

Your “move” is really hitting me, as we are preparing to list our house soon and may be putting our things in storage until we figure out exactly what is next. I went through the letters this winter. You are right. It’s amazing what records (and memories) they hold. Best wishes for what’s ahead!

Frances Mayes's avatar

I'm overwhelmed by the letters!

Etta Madden's avatar

Hopefully, they will feed your future writing!

Becky Cabaza's avatar

I love this one, Frances. Charlie packed books by trim size. I’ve no doubt your next adventures are just around the bend.

Frances Mayes's avatar

Moving is so much harder than ever! And what is just around that bend! Hope you are thriving, Becky!

Diane Monterotti Whitman's avatar

This is all good food thought. Letter writing has been on my mind since reading the Correspondent. I wish you a happy transition to a more permanent life at Bramasole. Your book A Place in the World really inspired me to make our Lake Home in Minnesota a place everyone wants to gather at and keep working on. Cozy Winters and beautiful Summers. 🌞

Diane Monterotti Whitman

Coco's avatar

It’s exciting to have another grand adventure, which your life really is! We all should look at life as a series of grand adventures. I am eager to see you in our grand adventure’s homes in Cortona. We now have less than a month just to get ready for our 6 month life in Cortona. Our life is San Francisco is too firmly entrenched with my love of this city, its diversity, the CLIMATE, yes I love the cooler summers& mild winters. But our old Victorian is just the right size & garden for the dual life & so easy to travel to see the world. I love our neighborhood & the countless of different cuisines within 6 blocks from

Our house, 4 on our corner.

You are the epitomy of living a life with meaning & joy, creativity, intellectual curiousity which to me is the secret of life. Looking forward to having adventures with you soon!!!

Deb's avatar

Moving....on. you capture the emotion(s) so eloquently. Thank you Frances.

Judith Hammerschmidt's avatar

Which house are you leaving? I hope not North Carolina!

Frances Mayes's avatar

Yes, NC--but we will be back at the end of the year to buy another house --smaller--here. We have such a great group of friends here, and also family, so we'll always have a stake here.

Judith Hammerschmidt's avatar

I have never met you - live in Durham - but love your olive oil and love of Italy. Good luck!

Beam, Jeffery's avatar

You are awesome. Packing books by alpha! As we creep, like tortoises, toward moving to Carol Woods in a year or so, we are sorting through almost five decades in our home. I am so sorry we never saw each other much. Stanley and I both. But we have felt your and Ed's presence in our Hillsborough Eden as a cherished, even sacred, gift.

Frances Mayes's avatar

Agree, Jeffery! Didn't know you are planning a transition, too. We must get together this fall. We shall return...

Laura Thayer's avatar

Hang in there Fitz and SonnyMan ... Tuscany is waiting for you!

Pat Fricano's avatar

I've moved a total of 17 times in my life, and it never gets easier.

Frances Mayes's avatar

And you're still standing!!!

Pat Fricano's avatar

There are moments when I'm humped over and or limp. I'm hoping for one more move, to Italy when I retire. My wife is from Tuscany (Firenze) and I'm a Sicilian American. Your books inspired me to travel frequently to Italy to reconnect with my Italian roots and relatives. Oddly enough I met my wife Carmen in Tallahassee, Florida where I went to FSU and later on lived for many years. I also appreciated your tales of growing up in Georgia, being that I lived only 20 miles from the Georgia state line. I want to tell you that I owe you a debt of gratitude because your books changed my outlook on life and allowed me to enjoy the simple pleasures around us. Thank you for your prose that stirred my soul! Pasquale "Pat" Fricano

Samia Serageldin's avatar

So sad to see you go, Frances. We will miss you. This “Southern part of Heaven” is a small community, and your loss will be deeply felt.

Frances Mayes's avatar

We will be back. All summer I'll be checking real estate. Hope you and M have a grand summer. Back to the Red Sea?? xoxo

Samia Serageldin's avatar

A comforting thought that we'll be seeing you again in a few months. Our June plans 🙏are for the Mediterranean, where we have our little place. I miss the sea of my childhood. Love.

Cheryl Hardt Jackson's avatar

Best wishes! Alphabetical book packing has me thinking ❤️

Samantha DuBois's avatar

As someone whose belongings are still packed in climate-controlled storage, I feel this deeply. I miss my coffeemaker from time to time, and my books, of course, but it's been a fair trade for some unforgettable adventures. Wishing you many new and fond memories!