Thursday July 23

Mt. Labbro– Is famous for the story of Davide Lazzaretti, a 19th century religious visionary who founded a Utopian Christian socialist community on the remote Tuscan mountain peak. The movement combined traditional Catholic devotion with early socialist ideals, advocating for common property, equality and brotherhood for the impoverished rural classes of the Monte Amiata region.

Elena siad there would be a dance on a mountain and her son Filippo would be playing. She ask John and I to join her. She told John we would all be wearing headphones. That is all I knew before going. The mountain was about 45 minutes from home and it was a short walk from the car park to the top.

There were 16 adults and 2 children. The music was very powerful. The closest description I have is warm electronic. A lot of the songs had no words and the ones that did were about healing and forgiveness. The energy was beautiful and everyone moved to their own rhythm. Some people climbed the hill and danced on the top of the church. We all did whatever we felt, literally. I cried a few times and so did John. I would do it again if given the chance. After we had a picnic with good food and wine and talked about the profound experience we had just shared. When the sun went down we climbed down together. I will cherish the memory of this evening of dance on Mt. Labbro forever. A truly amazing experience. Mt. Labbro is a magical place.