I think about my own life, and even the reason we are in Tuscany. It was partly so I could research and work on a book for a couple of weeks, but it was also because I was bone-tired, body, mind, and spirit. Weary with grief, overworked, pulled between an aging mother and other family members, and a looming fiftieth birthday.

Something in my life needs to change, but what and how? To cut the equivalent of good, beautiful, and tasty fruit must demand a great deal of courage.

If I approach my life like the garden, then it appears there are three steps to the pruning process.

• The first step is to clear out the deadwood. What are the things that are simply in the way of your growth and serve no good purpose at all?
• The second step is to snip those live vines and branches that are trailing off in directions that are not allowing the vine (you) to focus all your energy on producing fruit.