Elevated 300 meters above sea level, the village of Lefkes is home to a remaining handful of Parians offering their hospitality and wares. Luke, Andy, Professor William, and I explored the alleyways for a route to the church of Agia Triada. The church’s spires were the focus of the village center, and could be seen from any winding path we traipsed through.
Every path evolved into trails of fauna, and the Parian honeybees marched among petals to eagerly gather the pollen that made Paros honey so celebrated in ancient Greece. Through the flowering plants, the church was very quickly on us, and it revealed itself a sincere compliment of the Holy Trinity.
Professor William navigated us to a café at the apex of the paths leading to the church. There, the professor provided the host his annual greeting. (Later, the professor would enthusiastically relate to us the previous occasions he had met the Parian, and how he envied the Parian’s vocation in Lefkes). Each of us enjoyed a pie and a peach beside other admirers of the marble monument.
Behind the church of Agia Triada, a cemetery is maintained on an inclined terrace overlooking the valley. Plaques with images of Parians young and old were scattered among the graves. Stone images memorializing their heroes were carved into World War II tombs. Everywhere, a candle was lit, and in passing, an older woman in black greets me quietly, “Kaliméra.”
At the cemetery’s edge, Luke and I spotted the Byzantine Road, a millennia-old footpath connecting the island’s mountains to the Aegean Sea. The (sometimes) paved road is nestled among precarious stone walls, and cannot be easily discerned from the natural landscape it traverses. Yet, this path once sustained the island’s local commerce, and offered direction to weary travelers unsure of their destination.
Throughout Paros, I have learned many lessons: on this day, with my companions, I ventured to a city high in the mountains and found marvels I did not expect. I have returned from Lefkes humbled by my experiences.
– Daniel Spivey