WEBVTT 00:00:00.000 --> 00:00:02.240 The evening air was thick with the heavy, 00:00:02.419 --> 00:00:04.639 sweet scent of bruised stems and summer heat. 00:00:05.200 --> 00:00:07.459 For weeks, the rhythmic swipe of the curved 00:00:07.459 --> 00:00:09.460 scythes had been the soundtrack of Julian's 00:00:09.460 --> 00:00:12.259 days, but now, as the sun dipped toward 00:00:12.259 --> 00:00:14.919 the horizon, the lavender harvest was finally 00:00:14.919 --> 00:00:15.300 done. 00:00:15.980 --> 00:00:18.839 Endless purple fields, rolling like waves to the 00:00:18.839 --> 00:00:20.679 edge of the plateau, stretched out 00:00:20.679 --> 00:00:23.179 beneath a sky bruised in violet and burnt 00:00:23.179 --> 00:00:23.640 amber. 00:00:24.539 --> 00:00:27.059 Julian wiped a sleeve across his forehead, leaving 00:00:27.059 --> 00:00:29.480 a smudge of dust and pollen, and pushed 00:00:29.480 --> 00:00:31.199 open the heavy oak door of the old 00:00:31.199 --> 00:00:32.219 stone farmhouse. 00:00:32.859 --> 00:00:35.520 Inside, the thick walls held the cool memory 00:00:35.520 --> 00:00:38.560 of the afternoon, a welcome sanctuary after 00:00:38.560 --> 00:00:40.679 hours under the blazing, provencil sun. 00:00:41.240 --> 00:00:43.820 He paused by the window, looping the iron 00:00:43.820 --> 00:00:46.060 latch to secure the weathered wooden shutters 00:00:46.060 --> 00:00:48.539 just as the last rays of daylight caught 00:00:48.539 --> 00:00:50.380 the rugged stonework of the courtyard. 00:00:51.320 --> 00:00:53.340 Stepping back outside with a chilled pitcher of 00:00:53.340 --> 00:00:55.479 water, he sat on the low stone bench 00:00:55.479 --> 00:00:55.679 near 00:00:55.679 --> 00:00:56.039 the well. 00:00:56.519 --> 00:00:59.439 The golden hour cast a warm, melting glow 00:00:59.439 --> 00:01:01.619 over the architecture, turning the ancient 00:01:01.619 --> 00:01:03.560 limestone the color of toasted honey. 00:01:04.219 --> 00:01:06.719 Above, the first stars were beginning to puncture 00:01:06.719 --> 00:01:07.939 the velvet dusk. 00:01:08.219 --> 00:01:10.540 Bees had long since retreated to their hives, 00:01:10.859 --> 00:01:13.239 leaving the courtyard in a profound, velvety 00:01:13.239 --> 00:01:15.859 silence broken only by the distant chirp of 00:01:15.859 --> 00:01:17.099 a solitary cicada. 00:01:17.959 --> 00:01:20.799 Julian poured himself a glass, watching the sunset 00:01:20.799 --> 00:01:23.439 bleed into the violet horizon, deeply 00:01:23.439 --> 00:01:25.500 content in the quiet heart of the countryside.