Ah...la Poiitique! Comme c'est compliquee!

As you probably all know, France has, over the past several decades, embraced Socialism. This election cycle, the tide seems to be turning. In fact the tide has turned into a tsunami, according to our local newspaper, Le Midi Libre. The first of 2 rounds in the French "elections legislatives" was yesterday. Out of 10 political parties, Macron's party (LREM-La Republique en Marche) came out with 32.3% of the votes, 10 points higher than the second biggest total. It does look like the French are into a sort of renaissance, politically. The analysts predict 400 newly elected deputies, after the second round next Sunday.

Macron, young, good-looking, & up to now relatively unknown, won the French presidency in May, defeating Marie Le Pen & her party, "le Front National", a party known to be anti-immigration, anti-Europe, anti almost everything. Her party, yesterday, only received 13% of the votes. It appears the French are very ready for a change!

So far, every French person we've met & spoken with is "dans les nuages" (flying high!) with this change in politics. The post election euphoria is totally at odds with what happened in the US. We just cannot help making comparisons between what's happening here in France, & what happened, & what is STILL happening in the US. It's been a rough year, no matter who you voted for in the American election.

Last summer, French (& other European) friends wanted us to explain how a man like Donald Trump could be seriously considered a candidat for president of the United States. This summer, they want to know why & how he actually won. And I am finding it so very hard to explain. It's quite complicated!

And then there's England! It appears now that maybe the British are not so keen on a "Brutal Brexit". The world is certainly in a state of flux. But, hasn't it always been? Doesn't history show us that nothing is forever?

Saturday, Les & I visited one of our favorite nearby towns, Aigues-Mortes. Talk about history! The name, meaning "dead waters", refers to its marshes, which became famous for salt collection. The Romans laid it out as a typical Roman town, with a lovely square in the center. The streets still run in a grid, with a major street running east-west, & another one running north south, & smaller streets adding to its width & length. The Romans were great builders & great adminsistrators, but alas, the Roman Empire had its issues too. Even Hadrian's wall couldn't keep the newbies out.

In 791, Charlemagne, king of the Francs (& descended from those "newbies" mentioned above), arrived in Aigues-Mortes. He added the "Matafere Tower", designed to warn residents of the arrival of intruders. Crowned Holy Roman Emperor in 800, Charlemagne ruled over what is now France & Germany, with a central seat for administrating justice & promoting education. He also set up a new monetary system. His empire faded after his death, when his 3 sons couldn't work out who was really in charge.

In 1240, King Louis IX of France acquired Aigues-Mortes, & surrounded it with a Medieval wall. It's from this walled city that Saint Louis, as they call him, sailed on his first Crusade to take back Jerusalem from the Infidels.

By the time of the French Revolution, in 1789, Aigues Mortes' towers looked out over a port that had almost disappeared due to silting. People had started clearing the woods around the port, deforesting the area, & land began flowing into the Mediterranean.

So what does Aigues-Mortes have to do with the French or the American elections, or Brexit?

Every time we are in Aigues-Mortes, we end up at Place St. Louis, along with a lot of other people. We all enjoy that beautiful fountain, whether young children playing IN the fountain, or seniors like us, watching them & laughing at their total JOY in being there. This has been going on for centuries, with different political regimes. They were all there in Aigues- Mortes: the Romans, Charlemagne & his Francs, the French kings, & the Revolutionaries.

The Romans built a huge empire, linked by incredible roads. While they took care of it, it worked. Once they got lazy, somebody else took over.

Charlemagne rose from a Europe in chaos, & for awhile, created a seat of justice & learning. That too, faded, when his sons couldn't maintain it.

Louis IX built a wall to keep out intruders, & set off to conquer others in another part of the world. Eventually, the kings of France lost their power, when it had become abusive & redundant, & non-responsive to their subjects.

It all goes back to our summer theme, "il faut cultiver notre jardin". If we don't take care of our garden, it will not endure. We have to feed & water it. We have to prune it to get out the dead wood, so plants can survive. We have to protect it, of course, but even a WALL can't keep out the inevitable, be it the tide, or a tsunami. We have to accept that there are other varieties of plants that we might have to add to keep our garden healthy & strong. And most of all, we can't let it go to seed. A lazy gardener is not a good gardener!

If you want to see the state of our garden, please check out our picture albums for week 1 & 2. It's in a state of repair & rebuild at the moment, after significant pruning. Speaking of that, I need to get out there & WATER! Our summer heat has arrived!

A bientot,

Elise & Les