The Ride of a Lifetime! After sixteen years of trying to live in Italy as "true Italians," we set out to write a book about our experiences. As it turns out, we ended up doing a lot more than just writing a book because we decided that to capture the essence, we really needed music, poetry, drawings, videos and more. So, that's exactly what we did. You can find our complete body of work at www.uncommonpromise.wordpress.com. We hope you can visit us from time to time—let us know what your personal adventure looks like. Perhaps we can all glean some inspiration to go out and write a new chapter in our own stories! Wishing you the best, Cheryl and Emerson

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(Em here)

Wimp isn’t a word that comes to mind when I think about myself, but perhaps I need to rethink that. We live in the campagna, country and have grown accustomed to the many creatures that share this space. After all, they were here long before we were, so we have created an amicable agreement about limits and how we can best get along together. The variety of critters includes cinghiale, wild boar, capriolo, deer, lupo, wolf, and istrice, porcupine to name just a few. As in life, where the little things are often the most difficult, so it is with me and lucertola—the dreaded lizard. (more…)

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The spirit of a dog is irresistable. One of the sweetest passed on yesterday—we gave her the name Emelee almost 16 years ago. That little girl came into our lives and stole our hearts from the first time we saw her. She arrived sight unseen on an airplane from Indiana as she bravely winged her way alone, across the US to become a “California girl” for life. (more…)

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There are some people in this world who are absolutely unforgettable. Even if the encounter is brief, the experience becomes indelibly etched in memory. Perhaps you meet someone with a big and charismatic personality. Maybe their line of work has a memorable quality as well. And then there are those who combine the two. Dario Cecchini is one of those people. (more…)

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Em here,

Excitement and sadness mix to form a rather strange emotional concoction—perhaps an unusual elixer that hopefully, magically brings out the best in life. Cheryl leaves today for a month—4 whole weeks! Duty calls sometimes, and since family is one of our priorities, she must go alone. That may not sound like a big deal or seem like a terribly long time, but it is for us. (more…)

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Our good friend Giacomo Martini just arrived in his three-wheeled truck, the Ape (say ah-pay) which means “bee” in Italian—since that is how it sounds. He has started cutting the scarpate, slopes around the olive trees. Good-bye to the fading yellow wild flowers and poppies. Hello to a well manicured hillside. (more…)

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We realize that our approach to writing is unorthodox, but that is exactly what we want. It provides a way for us to literally write as partners on “one story.” We enjoy a “volley” process of writing, whereby we edit each other’s work until there is nothing left to change. Both computers are set up so that each of us has an inspiring place to work. (more…)

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Friday morning we tossed the last few items into the car—sweaters, sunglasses, maps and cameras. Three doors closed one after the other and we were off on a road trip to the Tuscan hilltowns of Cortona, Montepulciano and Pienza. Our dear friend Scott’s visit inspired this tour—drawn to the allure of the ancient Tuscan countryside. Rolling down the white road from the house, we began our journey with rocks crunching under the tires. The adventure had begun! (more…)