Mosè’s Journey: Work, Family, and Roots at Molino De Vita
Next February 28 will mark the end of an era for us at Molino De Vita. Said Mohsen, known to all as Mosè, will leave his beloved job at our mill, closing a circle that began more than thirty years ago. But a story like his does not truly end; it transforms, settling into the soil he cultivated, into the walls he helped build, into the grains of wheat he watched grow, flourish, and turn into flour.
It was 1991 when Mosè arrived here, in a sun-drenched corner of land, carrying the echo of an idea turning into a dream: a mill, a project, a future to build. He had come to work in the fields, drawing from experience that had already taken him to France. He arrived through a family connection with his brother-in-law, but here he found a family he had yet to discover. We were searching for him, even without knowing it: a discreet and tireless presence, able to listen to the land and those who work it, understanding without the need for many words.
First in the fields, then as a guardian, Mosè became the faithful shadow of our world in the making. It was more than just a job; it was trust. Over time, he brought his wife, Jarray Rachida, and their firstborn, Mouadh. Then their home grew, and here Omar, Kalede, and Zohra were born. The farm became their nest, their horizon. Today, one of his sons also works in the fields, and the Mohsen family still watches over this land, as they always have.
But Mosè’s path did not stop at agriculture. When the dream of the mill took shape, he was there, with hands covered in dust and the future. He helped build it, piece by piece, until he became the silent guardian of its beating heart: the warehouse.
For years, he watched over the grain that came and went, his watchful eyes on the fruits of shared labor. He saw the mill grow, he saw our family and his intertwine like wheat swaying in the summer breeze. "When Mosè arrived, I was at university," recalls Nicola De Vita, "and he was the only support alongside my father Vincenzo. Our families blended like grain in the wind. We watched his children grow, and they watched ours. We exchanged knowledge and flavors: I love couscous, and he fell in love with our traditional dishes."
Even today, as Mosè prepares to close this long chapter of life, the bond that unites us remains unbreakable. On February 28, Mosè will retire, here in Italy, in Puglia, in the Monti Dauni, the land that has become his second home. Because this is not just about work, nor just about integration; it is about belonging. In a world that too often gets lost in words, we have always lived it in the everyday: in hands that reach out, in steps that align without the need for grand declarations.
On February 28, Mosè will leave his position, but his presence will linger within these walls. Every grain of wheat that slips through our fingers in the years to come will carry the imprint of his presence. Because some stories are not archived; they are cherished. And Mosè will always be a part of our journey, like the wind among the wheat fields, like the sun warming the earth in anticipation of a new season.