The morning that Leslie and I painted together was a few days after I tweaked my knee at “Festa” (being silly, then I couldn’t walk). Therefore, with physics ruling all things, we sat at the bar (La Torraccia) under some shade with one view that I would paint several times. Much of the time in MDdiV was spent in my studio or on walks around the village so the time and care to sit in one place was not only welcome for my trick knee but also gave me time to really look closely at that view of gold and green fields and woods. It had been years since I had last painted landscape in watercolor so getting used to how the paint layers was nice. I tried to remember some of the things I tell my own students in terms of letting it build without judgement while also sighting the angles of the fields. Getting the patches of farmland was an internal goal of mine as was the color match. We chatted which was really lovely (as always with Leslie) and I let my knee stay put. I deeply appreciate the opportunity to paint the landscape because honestly, I would not have allowed that time if not for the invitation.