"And he blushes even more!"

Pantzios turned, ready to mock him. To tell him that his mind had been clouded by the books and novels he read and that he was daydreaming while awake. Of course, he tried to smooth out his words as much as possible, since he was in the service of his godfather Galinos and was obliged to show the appropriate respect.

However, as he glanced at the mouth of the Pyxitis or Dafnopotamos river, his eyes opened wide. Just as one is taken aback by life's unexpected events.

"What the hell!" he exclaimed. Then he started rowing towards the shore until the boat ran aground on the sandy bottom. "I'm going to see what's happening. Keep your eyes open!" he instructed him, and jumped into the water.

He came out onto the beach, stood for a moment at the river's mouth, and then walked quickly along the bank until the few plane trees and willows hid him from view. With this scene, Galinos Filonidis began to tell me his life story. I decided to put his story down on paper. Why, though? I asked myself countless times and the answer was always the same: To get to know him better by following in his footsteps through every experience. And also, because I believe that many will benefit from his passions and tribulations.

As for who I am, the one telling you this story, the time will come to reveal it. The day before, they had traveled to Chotsi, the former village of Kymina, to procure hazelnuts. The area was famous for its round hazelnuts, called "fountoukia" in Turkish, and the producers kept plenty in their storehouses from the previous year's harvest. The reason was the turmoil caused in the markets by the European War, later known as the First World War, and the fact that in November 1914 the Ottoman Empire also sided with Germany.