The Thirsty Caterpillar

I looked forward to Fridays when I was working at The Office. The weekend was always a welcome escape from my last job. Wine making is not a desk job. At least it isn’t at a smaller winery and definitely not during harvest. I had this realization my first day. There is always something to do even if there is some downtime in between. A day might start out unplanned, in the vines to check the fruit at the request of the grower, which we did on Friday. The work schedule is planned out week by week and can change on a daily basis. Working weekends is a given. Harvest also means working around the clock to keep the chemical reactions moving along.

I think one of the biggest adjustments I had, and this is more likely a function of being a newbie, was becoming accustomed to waiting to be told what to do. At The Office, I was in management so this was a role reversal for me. While I was eager to be helpful and make a contribution at the winery I couldn’t really be proactive about it. By the end of the week though, in the realm of responsibility that I was able to take on, I was able to anticipate what I could do next. Even if it was cleaning up. By Friday, I gained more confidence and knowledge than I thought was possible in a mere six days.

People who know me well have commented (and complained) that I’m fiercely protective of managing my time, on a professional and personal level. I don’t like long meetings or lingering at a restaurant once the bill has come. I don’t like talking on the phone except when it’s a catch up session with a long distance friend. I confirmed two things on this trip that I need to work on; the first is becoming a better listener and the second is being more present. While there were many moments this week where I was very much in the moment, these are stubborn blemishes on my consciousness.

At the beginning of the year, you might remember I resolved to simplify. I still have work to do because all too often my mind wanders to Stuff. The voice in my head that reminds me to update my resume, send my friend Liz a belated birthday gift, look up that article someone mentioned, download the African music that was playing on the crush pad. Does this sound familiar? I’ve started writing things down because I’d exhaust even more of my awareness trying to set a mental alarm clock to remind myself of all the things I wanted to remember.

Right now I’m entering a period of major transition, a metamorphosis of sorts, like a caterpillar. As I drove back to Oakland at the end of the day Friday, I felt an assemblage of nostalgia, sadness, relief, satisfaction and wonder; I know I’ll be back soon. It has been an adventure, which brings me to Helen, a petite blonde tornado also from NY who started her internship at the winery back in July. She left NY in June, just after her 30th birthday in pursuit of fabulous roman candles and farming experience stopping first along the way in the Midwest to assist a sustainable agriculture co-op. She talked about working harvest in New Zealand next. I admire her fearlessness and wish her speedy success in achieving her badge of honor at the winery: purple hands by the time she leaves California.

It really has been an adventure for me on so many levels and it best captured by a special experience I had one day. Early in the week, I wandered into the vines at the winery for a bit, looking at small, left over clusters of grapes when I came upon a little bird’s nest tucked away in the leaves. It was a sweet discovery and certainly a metaphor for things to come. I will drink it all in little sips.