Today I was picking out wine for the Birthday/Valentine’s/Symphony weekend. Under ‘More Imports’ my eyes rested on a bottle Chenin Blanc from South Africa – Simonsig, and then proudly: ‘owned by the Malan family since 1688′… Next to the Simonsig there is a Chardonnay from Fleur du Cap, a miniature Table Mountain on the label – ‘inspired by nature’, and ‘matured underground in the Berkelder, Stellenbosch – reflecting our closeness to nature’.
And I wonder, how do you compensate for tradition and heritage. How do you replace ’since 1688′. Can you even try to fill it in? Or do you continue life with a void, half undone, wounds slowly turning into scars? We did dislodge the roots of 325 years…
The secret to fulfillment on the road ahead may lie in seeing myself as a citizen of the Earth. The familiar places with vineyards, mountains and beloved nature will always be part of our heritage… as well as our future. Only now we embrace a bigger landscape, a wider sky, a more complex life – while never escaping the influence of the past. Never growing on without appreciating back. A plant with cut roots will wither away. Transplanting a 325yr old tree can be accomplished only if the roots are supported by abundant mother soil – to nurture new growth in the now unfamiliar sky.