0 — LE MAT

POSITIVE MEANING

There he goes, our mad vintner, down the open road, sack on his back and dog at his heels, with neither map nor almanac to tell him where to plant! He follows his nose as one follows the scent of a fermenting must, stumbles over the clods, tastes the wild berries and laughs at the stars. The wise call him lost; he knows himself free. And who can say what vintage may spring from this glorious wandering?

Freedom, spontaneity, adventure.

NEGATIVE MEANING

But beware the fool who mistakes the open horizon for the ditch! Round and round he turns in his own rows, drunk not on wine but on his own fancy, unable to tell north from south or vine from shoot. Too much caution roots him to the spot, too much ardour pitches him into the ravine — and either way, the harvest will wait.

Folly, recklessness, disorientation.