Life in rural France – au revoir Bread Man

Bonjour

I hope that you and yours are well.

Here in the far north of France, we are calling it “the new south of France” because we have had one of the sunniest summers anyone can remember. We’ve had a fair bit of rain too so the Seven Valleys where I live are lush and green, and nature has had a ball – everything is ripening; apple, plum and pear trees are bursting with fruit, big juicy blackberries are dangling from hedges, and the fields are full of bales of hay waiting to be stored.

Soon we’ll have a harvest thanksgiving party in the village – called a ducasse, a Flemish word as this region was once part of Flanders, and traditions are held dear. The town hall will throb to the sound of music – there’s bound to be a fair amount of the late great Johnny Hallyday – AKA the “French Elvis,” alongside more modern music. Great big cauldrons will steam with the mouth-watering aroma of mussels cooked in white wine, and great vats of French fries will sizzle alongside.

Posters inviting everyone are all over the village and surrounding villages. Community spirit is encouraged, and people will flock from all around to join in the festivities. The week after our ducasse, another one will take place in another village, followed by another the week after that, and so on for several weeks. Life in rural France is rarely dull.

But this party is different from usual. Bread Man will be there, and he won’t have to worry about leaving before food is served (if it’s before 10 pm, we’re lucky!) because he has to get up early to bake bread. He has retired.

And this, I am sad to tell you, has led to him being replaced by a vending machine – the 21st century has arrived in the middle of nowhere, rural northern France. It’s the end of an era for us. Bread Man arrived in all weathers – when snow lay thick, when the sun beat down, when rain ran like a river down our little hill, when it was blowing a gale or dark with thunder. He bought us jokes alongside cakes, friendship with our croissants, and gossip with our baguettes. I’m almost in tears writing this.

I learned a new song for his retirement – in English we would sing “For He’s a Jolly Good Fellow”, in French it’s “Il est un bon camarade” – same tune and interestingly the English version comes from a French song which comes from an even older French song called Malbrough s’en va-t-en guerre (Marlborough has left for War), allegedly composed in 1709 after a battle between the French and the English Duke of Marlborough’s armies. It was a folk song, but Queen Marie Antoinette is said to have heard her maid singing it and loved the melody. After that, it became popular and spread to other countries, where it was adapted with their own words.

I know many of you will miss me telling you about him, and we too will miss him dreadfully, but I’ll be staying friends with him, so it’s not the end, but a new beginning for him as he embarks on a relaxing retirement, which may involve teaching me how to bake! Watch this space…

Wherever you are – I wish you a very bon weekend.

Bisous,
Janine
Editor of The Good Life France Magazine and website

Read the whole newsletter here

Janine Marsh is Author of My Good Life in France: In Pursuit of the Rural Dream, My Four Seasons in France: A Year of the Good Life and Toujours la France: Living the Dream in Rural France all available as ebook, print & audio, on Amazon everywhere & all good bookshops online. Her latest book How to be French – is a celebration of the French lifestyle and art de vivre.

Don’t miss the weekly newsletter which every week brings you inspiration from France

It’s easy to subscribe if you don’t want to miss my weekly newsletters of musings from France and a round-up of fab features, plus exclusive random newsletter giveaways. Just click here, type in your email address and click subscribe: Subscribe