Full Circle

On the final day of Pig-Week, as I affectionately call it, I had come full circle: In the beginning, there was emotion saying good-bye to the pigs; in the end, there was emotion saying good-bye to the butchers; and in between, there was everything else: loathing, learning, labor, laughter, love, awakening, understanding, growth, and appreciation.

There is silence in the lab as Giovanni and Emilio sew closed the last set of pancetta that will now cure for a year. Even the dining-room table where we regularly eat together is lacking the typical chatter. The team is tired but proud as each holds a beautifully assembled piece of meat for the concluding photos.

Giovanni lives alone, “Solamente io.” I was hoping he might have a figlio to follow in his father’s footsteps but was informed that today’s youth prefer the easier office jobs anyway. Being a macellaio is hard work, the government is imposing stricter food regulations, and the pop culture is promoting lean cuisine– all of these factors contribute to a trade that is not being replenished by the new generation.

Meanwhile, Il Capitello, “The Captain”, lives alone too. His wife passed away over 30 years ago so he fends for himself on a remote farm 12 kilometers from town. The Captain likes his sausages; he has been ordering Cotechino and Sanguinacci for years.

It is snowing but Gian-Luca committed to meeting The Captain in town for a delivery. With 2 feet of snow to clear off his road, Gian-Luca begins the mission by starting his tractor and plowing a path out of Casa Lanzarotti.

Once in Borgotaro, The Captain greets us with a toothless smile. He is hunched as he holds a blue checkered umbrella against the flurry. We hand him a 3 kilo package of skin and blood sausage, and there it is again, that precious smile.