Chapter XVI
At home
-Giovanni, what’s up with you?-
The question took him by surprise and he gave a start which Giulia did not miss. The house was quiet, the children were in school and Maria had locked herself in the rooms upstairs.
Giovanni was still and was looking out from the big kitchen window. The land in December was bare, hardened by the north wind blowing. There was not much to do at the land. He could take his time in the morning at home and go out without any rush. Before saying anything, Giulia stopped for a moment to look at him, with a little extra weight put on over the years, his hair with just few white hair and his shoulders slightly bent over. A great sense of tenderness came all over her, similar to what she felt looking at her children when they were asleep, when
