April Lilacs

Katya, my friend and advocate here in Dzhulyunitsa, is a neighbor of mine in the single apartment building here.  She has another family house where they go to garden (one of two gardens) and to hang out in a quieter part of the village.  She invited me to the garden for fresh lettuce, onions, garlic and parsley.  And of course, a wonderful bunch of lovely lilacs!  What a treat to brighten my spirits and apartment.

(I have posted additional photos on the Spring 2013 page.  Click on the link in the column to the right.)

Over the past 6 months feeling well has been a challenge.  Off and on I've been successful, but I've had more than my share of colds and "owies."  I've always been a pretty healthy person, so this on-again, off-again, not-feeling-well is new to me and has made me more empathetic to folks who have chronic illnesses.  Around March 20th, another "new" cold began.  A few days later I traveled to Sofia for our Final Peace Corps conference.  I had a couple intense coughing spasms, but had assistance when I needed it.  I am grateful for the help of the Peace Corps medical staff.  For the past month I've been drinking herbal teas for lung health, using a few herbal remedies I brought with me to Bulgaria and meditated on my emotional/mental imbalance which might be causing these physical experiences.

Certainly I feel some stress about winding down my work and time in Bulgaria.  Two years in a community is a long time.  I will miss my friends here and have appreciated their warm embrace into their village and lives.  We have shared our cultures with each other.  We've shared laughter, learning and ideas. They have been very patient with my fledgling Bulgarian language skills.

I look forward to returning to America.  Can't wait to see my family and friends there.  Returning to a familiar life is both exciting and terrifying on various levels.  I will have some time in Sedona to re-acclimate to a time zone 10 hours earlier than what my body is used to.  I'm sure some of what used to be familiar to me, will still be.  But I will see everything with a different perspective after living in Bulgaria for an extended time.  The astounding beauty of Sedona is calling to me and I look forward to the quiet and the energy of some of my favorite trails (and maybe some new ones too). Then I will visit family in California and the Pacific Ocean.

This is all I have planned.  I know the next chapter will work out just fine.  But I do have some stress when I begin thinking about all the details about where to live and work; how can I find a good car in my price range, etc.

I've been doing my best to stay focused on all the wonderful parts of my life and my personal strengths and gifts.  But my body has told me, I've been focusing too much on the stresses.  I went to Sofia last week for my departing medical and dental appointments.  Along with me went a refreshed version of a cold with a ongoing cough.  The doctor took me to a specialist who diagnosed a virus (no surprise).  More than five weeks of not feeling my usual healthy self, wore me down and I have embraced the medical solutions to my symptoms.  Yesterday was the first day of using an inhaler and taking Zyrtec.  I felt better almost immediately and I was able to go for an uphill walk with friends, without a long coughing spell.  I will continue the course of medication for a week because I want to be healthy and available to these last weeks in my village.

I will continue to focus on what I want to create in my life when I return to Arizona and California.  I will continue to trust the process of co-creation and that the next chapter in my life will be as lovely and rewarding as my life has been all along the way.

P.S.  I'm not sure how many more blog posts I'll have time for - there is lots to do in the next 6 weeks!

A Summary of Bulgarian Spring Holidays

The days are warm in Bulgaria.  This past week the temperatures have been in the mid-to-high 70s.  And the week before I was still using my heater occasionally when I felt chilled in the evenings and mornings.  It was a quick switch!

Here is a quick update on Bulgarian holidays - it’s a time rich in holidays :

Sat. April 27 – Lazarovden (Day of Lazar).  According to the Bulgarian tradition, Lazarovden is the day that marks the transition in maidens between a girl and a young woman fit to be married.   On this day, several groups of girls aged between 10 and 16 (“lazarki”), dressed in their best holiday clothes or wedding costumes adorned with wreaths and bunches of flowers go around the village. They visit each house and sing praises to everyone in the family, including children and the elderly, women and men, and Bulgarians of all professions.  The owners of each visited home gave them eggs and money.  Old sayings state that any house visited by lazarki will prosper throughout the year.

Sun. April 28 -  Bulgarian Orthodox Christians celebrate Palm Sunday - Tsventisa-Vrabnitsa, to mark the triumphal arrival of Christ into Jerusalem.   The Bulgarian tradition is to carry flowers and willow branches, rather than palm leaves, and the day is also regarded as the holiday of the fields, meadows and forests. It is one of the most important holy days, falling one week before Easter, and marking the beginning of the Passion of Christ.

Wed. May 1 – Labor Day, celebrates the efforts and accomplishments of those who work AND it marks the point in the year where people begin earning money for themselves after 4 months of earning money for the government – in the form of taxes.

Fri. May 3 – Bulgarian Orthodox Good Friday

Sat. May 4 - Bulgarian Orthodox Good Saturday

Sat. May 5 – Easter Sunday

Mon. May 6 – St. Georges Day. In Bulgaria St. George is the patron of spring verdure and fertility, and of shepherds and farmers. His Day, May 6, is believed to set in summer and the new farming cycle.   A common ritual is to prepare and eat a whole lamb, which is an ancient practice possibly related to Slavic pagan sacrificial traditions and the fact that St. George is the patron saint of shepherds.  A special place on the table is attributed to the ritual Gergyovden breed. All sorts of bread are made for the feast - the cross bread, the shepherd's bread, the large ring-bread, as well as small ones, or the special ring-shaped bun baked by the young wife in the house.

So this year many Bulgarians have a long holiday from May 1^st through the 6^th.

63 Days

"Every new beginning comes from some other beginning's end."   Seneca, Roman philosopher, mid-1st century AD

Dear Friends, Family and Colleagues in Arizona and California,

First, let me say I have just posted photos from the past couple of months.  Click on Photos - Spring 2013 in the right hand column.

My time in Bulgaria as a Peace Corps Volunteer is quickly coming to a close.  The next seven weeks will be filled with final English classes, holidays and celebrations and many, many good-byes.  There will be laughter and there will be tears.

I am flying into Phoenix Sky Harbor Airport on June 16^th (I will know the exact time in the near future). 

I am beginning to explore options for the next chapter in my life when I return.  First, I’m very much looking forward to returning to the stunning beauty of Sedona to process these past 2 years and spending time on my favorite trails (as well as some one’s I haven’t been on) to assist my re-assimilation and reflection processes. 

At this point, I don’t know what work I will be doing and I’m not sure where I will be living (the first will influence the second, I’m sure).  I have lots of ideas, but no plan. 

The following tasks I’ve been researching online, but I also want to ask you to keep your eyes and ears open for me for opportunities:

1.   If anyone is traveling from Phoenix to Sedona on the 16^th or 17^th and has room for one person and 3 large suitcases – I’d love a ride.

 2.   Initially, I am looking for a short-term place to stay –

from my arrival on June 16 or 17 until I go to visit family in Calfornia - either for the 4^th of July weekend or the week of the 8th.

  3.    I will need to buy a car – I sold mine for $4,000 before leaving and that is my ballpark price for the next one.  Two important qualities I’m looking for:  it as to be dependable and have reasonable gas mileage.

  4.    I will be looking for work.  I will not be returning to real estate as a full time sales agent.  I am open to possibilities of all kinds – let’s talk.   (My interests include (but not limited to) teaching ESL, working with animals and/or children, working in a environment for health and healing.)

My time as a Peace Corps Volunteer has been quite an experience and I’m looking forward to sharing with those in America who are interested.  

Peace Corps Close of Service Conference B-27s

I have been in Sofia for a week -  it’s been great.  My group of Peace Corps Volunteers here in Bulgaria – the 27^th group in the past 22 years – is the Legacy Group of Peace Corps Volunteers here, we are the final group.  This week we had a review of some of the language skills we've learned in the past 2 years and then we had our 3-day Close of Service conference.  Some of us will be leaving our community within the next month or so and the last volunteers will leave in July.

We spent time remembering our first meeting two years ago this week – at our initial Staging Conference in  Philadelphia. Remembering our first impressions of each other and of the Peace Corps staff.  Then that long bus ride to JFK Airport in New York and the even longer flight(s) to Sofia, Bulgaria.  Then our first few days in Panichiste – in the gorgeous mountains south of Sofia.  Days of orientation, rules, expectations and teams.  It was  a beautiful spot to begin our Bulgarian journey. After this brief stay, we headed north to villages in the general area of the city of Vratsa, and the person or family we would live with for the next 11 weeks.  We knew only a few words of Bulgarian and they knew little or no English.  Truly immersion learning about Bulgarian culture and language.

Fast forward 2 years – here we are – now experienced volunteers - sharing our trials and our joys and hugging each other good-bye.  Some of us have formed lifelong friendships with other volunteers and with our Bulgarian friends.  We respect one another for the patience, perseverance and skills we’ve all demonstrated through our lives here.  Each of our experiences is individual, yet we all have much in common.  It has been a challenging and beautifully rich experience. 

I am not yet done.  I will be in Bulgaria until mid-June.  There is still more to do – teaching more English and other things to finish and refine.  People to meet with for the first time or for yet another time. Laughter to share. Tears to share. And more photos to share.  And maybe even a little rakia.  My heart is full with the love, kindness and generosity of the people I live with and work with in Dzhulyunitsa, Dobri Dyal and Dragizhevo.  I am so happy to have had this opportunity to live in rural Bulgaria.  And I am grateful to the very competent and supportive Peace Corps staff in Sofia.  

It’s been a great week.

January 21st is Babinden

According to the Bulgaria Gazette, "Babinden" (Grandmother's Day) is a Bulgarian holiday, celebrated on January 8th or 21st.  It is the day to honor the grandmothers who served as midwives in villages of the past.  

The day is related closely to family traditions that thank the women, who gave birth to all the children of the family.

Babinden is among the biggest female Bulgarian holidays, and is dedicated to the women that served as midwives, and also to young brides that just gave birth. The rites on this day mostly involve honoring the elderly women that helped younger ones as they gave new life.

I joined the Babas - who got creative with their costumes - to take photos as they visited homes and business receiving blessings - bon bons, money and kind words.  

What A Change

What a difference time and temperature makes.  Last week we were experiencing spring-like days.  And winter has returned (it is January after all).....this is the view from my apartment this morning.

Chania, Crete, Greece

I have posted some photos of Chania (pronounced Hania) - finally.  It's such a joy to look at these once again.  I hope you enjoy them too!

Here's a map to give you an idea of what Greece looks like.  Bulgaria is one of the northern neighbors and Crete is the furthest south of the Greek Islands.

I'm out of time for today, but I have a few more photos to share from January 2nd, 3rd, and 4th.  But they will have to wait.