When I was a little girl in Italy, I could often be found in my neighbor’s garden uncurling the spindly limbs of the cucumber vines and gathering flowers for my mother. I usually did this without my neighbor’s permission. She yelled at me on a number of occasions for being such a garden pest before deciding I was awfully cute and inviting me inside for a Coca-Cola (my very first).
Brian and me with Gisella and her garden
Gisella’s garden was one of my favorite places to be. In fact, Gisella was one of my favorite people to be with. She had a cat that could jump through hula hoops on cue and a barn loft filled with deliciously sweet smelling hay. She also appreciated my snail-hunting skills and would often send me on missions to scour the nearby fields and come back with as many snails as possible.
I thought she was keeping them as pets. Aaah, the innocence of childhood.
Our families became good friends during those years we lived in Italy. And Gisella is the first person I think of when I see the curling tendrils of a cucumber vine. I’m still tempted to uncurl them.
Two Girls and a Road 
Dena – I just hollered at the snails/pets.
Thankfully, she never invited me in to have dinner. Only Coca-Cola. I don’t know how I would have reacted knowing I was eating my snail friends.