Presents

I love receiving books as gifts. If a book is given to me as the first surprise to be unwrapped, that spells doom for all the other presents that sit, waiting, under the tree. When I unwrap a book, I must look it over and see the cover art; turning it over, I look at the author and his 'creds'; flipping over the cover, I read the chapter headings. This is my ritual. I MUST do it. It's just sad that it takes about 20 minutes. What normally happens is that I have to be poked and prodded to get back on the task of un-wrapping the other, less-inspiring gifts.

This Christmas was good for me, as I received a total of six books. I got no socks, no deodorant, no toothpaste, no wallet, just books. YES. Four of the six where in the Czech language, so I'm happy to say that this has been the first true 'bilingual' book binge I've had in my life. I requested some of the titles, but for the most part, they were a surprise. Two of the Czech books I received are 'classics' in their own right. Their titles are, "Babicka" by Bozena Nemcova and "Saturnin" by Zdenek (something). Babicka was written in the year 1855 and is considered to be the most famous Czech book ever written. It is a nostalgic story about life in the Czech countryside. Two interesting side-notes to the book, are that the setting takes place in the town of Litomysl, which is only about 10 miles away from Policka; and, that the book was written during a time when German was the offical and most powerful language in the Czech lands. One could say that Nemcova (ironically her last name means "German woman") is the Czech language's Chaucer.

Jamie's mom Debbie came to visit us bearing gifts. I got a couple thermal t-shirts and resting under the shirts, in the sparkley, gift bag was, yet again, another BOOK. This time, though, it was in English. She bought me Steinbeck's "Travels with Charlie", a book that documents John Steinbeck's travels around the United States with his k-9 companion. The book is a series of personal reflections where Steinbeck is attempting to get a feel for 'his country and his people'. In a small way, it is a story of falling back in love with America. He fights. He argues. He misunderstands. He gets frustrated. Ultimately, he is left confused. For me, it is a fitting place to start my 'trajectory' back home. So, as I make my descent back towards the landmass known as North America and towards the Appalachian hills cut by the Ohio River, I am hoping to take some advice from one of our greatest writers in how to fall back in love with 'home'.

My First Days In Policka

Greetings! Today is my third full day in Policka. This has been a great experience.
The town is really cute. Yesterday I was thinking, as we walked about 2 and 1/2 miles to Jitka's house, that I was glad we had to walk everywhere because I had the chance to really look and see everything around us. Walking also allowed us to decide to stop off at the cemetery and look around just because it looked interesting. Each day we have done a lot of walking to see different parts of the town and I am still surprised at how many people are out walking around. It is really refreshing to see more people than cars moving through the streets, and we have run into acquaintances of Jamie and Jeremy so I have met 'extra' people here.
We have spent time with the glass artist,Vlada, and also about 8 hours with Jitka and her parents Jan and Maria. Everyone has been so hospitable, serving good food and plenty of spirits(rum and beer and walnut liquor and apricot liquor and wine) and our conversations have been wonderful and funny! Jamie is at this moment cooking me an authentic Czech meal: Leak soup and fruit dumplings. After lunch we will visit a nearby town. I am looking forward to all the new people I will meet here and the new sites I will see!!!

Jamie's mom, Debbie

Merry Christmas

Last year we had an extensive post about what a typical Czech Christmas looks like, so this year I'm not going to say much about it in fear of being repetative. However I would like to share with you what the month of December has felt like.

The first two weeks of the month were as usual: classes, meetings, and preparing for the upcoming events (Pokec, Christmas play, and the living nativity). However, it didn't really feel like Christmas was approaching. Then it started to snow :) It is really unbelievable how different a little snow can make a place feel. All of a sudden it looked like Decemeber, however, this did not mean Christmas; only that our family would be arriving soon.

Once I learned that our family would be coming to visit I made a countdown chain. Seventy-six days marked the start of the chain, but once it got into December it had gotten much shorter. December first marked day 26 until the arrival of my mom and day 30 for when Jeremy's mom and brother would arrive. Two weeks later, at a one of my English class Christmas parties, someone mentioned that there were only 8 days until Christmas. I was surprised, only 8 days?! But then I remembered that there were only 10 days until my mom would be here, so it made sense.

December 20th (Sunday) we got our Christmas tree, and this is when it felt like Christmas was near. Jeremy carried it home and nailed a stand on the bottom and there it was, our christmas tree. Of course I couldn't wait to decorate it, even though we had to clean our house. So while Jeremy was cleaning the hall and bathroom (and thinking I was cleaning the kitchen and living room...) I joyfully decorated our tree.

It's funny how happy this little tree makes me. I don't really care about the presents that are under it, only the memories it brings. Looking at it now I remember every Christmas eve waiting for our tradition to start (I suppose part of the tradition was the waiting itself.) After lunch we would take a shower and get ready for church. On the way to church we would listen to Christmas songs on the radio and look at the the lights on the houses we pasted. This was a special night for me, not only because we celebrated the birth of Jesus, but because it was a time when my whole family would go to church together-- this of course caused some minor conflicts regarding who got to sit next to Dad. After church we would go to my grandparents house for dinner. This was a fun time because all my cousins and aunts and uncles from my mom's side of the family would be there. We kids would eat our dinners as fast as we could so we could open presents, however we would always have to wait for the "grown-ups" to have coffee and a little chat with each other. My grandfather was notorious for giving us little tasks to make us wait longer (like telling us to stand on our head and spit wooden nickels...whatever that meant). And after rearranging my grandma's ceramic NOEL several times(LEON,NOLE,LONE)and pestering our parents to death, we could finally open our presents.

Christmas day (December 25) was what every kids waited for. We would wake our parents up at 6am and drag them downstairs to open presents (of course when my bother and I were older, it was our parents who woke us up at 9 or 10). This summer I watched some old home videos from Christmas and it's so funny how excited we were about all the presents. There is one video where my brother is standing by the tree with big eyes whispering "wow" over and over again. After opening our presents, eating breakfast and putting our nice clothing back on, we would go to see my Dad's side of the family. Each year Christmas was at a different house, but everyone was there so it didn't matter. I rememeber really liking Christmas at my cousins Matthew and Jonathan's house because there was a big playroom downstairs away from the grownups where we could do whatever we wanted.

So for me Christmas ment seeing my whole family within two days, which is probably one of the reasons that we are looking forward to seeing our moms so much.

Reflection

Christmas arrived quicker than I expected. There wasn't really much of a build-up to the holiday this year, as there was last year. I'm sure some of the reason for this is because I am really looking forward to the weeks AFTER the holiday, as that marks the time when both my mom and brother, and Jamie's mom will be in Policka visiting.

Many times throughout the weeks, I find myself in thought and reflection about the upcoming seven months. Some days, I am ready to leave; I think that I've spent too much time away from home, and my job is becoming way too monotonous. However, there are those times-- and there are plenty-- when I am in the company of friends, maybe in pub or in a living room, where we are speaking Czech, laughing, sharing stories and even reminiscing about our first impressions of each other. When I think back to last year and all the work and study that went into understanding the Czech culture, language and way of life, I am left with a sense of accomplishment for what Jamie and I have been able to do in only 18 months. Yet, just when I feel that I have finally gotten comfortable in my life setting, I am reminded that I must leave and that all is fleeting, to a degree.

Last week, I looked through old pictures of the Policka congregation. I saw so many faces that were familiar, albeit, a little younger and less creased. The pictures were of youth retreats in Slovakia; Sunday trips to small, Moravian villages; and Christmas plays acted out 10 years ago. Jamie and I have only been a part of this congregation for a year and a half; we are just a small marker in the time line of Policka's history. Those in the church will be here long after we have left.

When Jamie and I leave, I'm sure that it will be very difficult for us and for those we have grown close to. Usually, when most people have lived through and experienced life together, there is a tendency to make large 'promises' and assurances that one day, in the far future, "We will see each other again." I don't want to do that. The cold-hard reality of our situation here is that we very well might not see many of our Czech friends again. Yes, we will speak through skype and email, every once and a while, but the day-to-day interaction of laughing, talking, being vulnerable and sharing ideas will not be as easy as it is here. I guess, there will come a time when my feelings for Policka, and the Czechs, will slowly, but surely, weaken into a memory from my 'younger years'.

I am often left wondering about what I will take from these two years in Policka. I remember that when my parents or friends would travel, they would bring back with them some kind of trinket, or clothing from an exotic local; however, they were usually only there for a few months, maximum. Yes, I could take a few pictures and traditional Czech mementos that remind of the country, but I want something more cerebral, more long-lasting; I want Policka to be woven into the fabric of who I am, even when the experiences here become blurry and vague. Of course, I could take the mindset that has been gained and some of the habits that I've become accustomed to, but those usually fall by the wayside, when the pulse of living, back at home, makes holding onto the newly-acquired lifestyle futile and frustrating (also, I'm not so sure some of the habits here are very good--lack of common courtesy being one). I don't really know what it is yet that I'm going to bring back, but I hope that it is the language; even though, that will be hard to maintain once I leave the border. I also want to always keep American 'cultural wars' in perspective in relation to the world.
It should be interesting...

I don't know, maybe all I'll have left from Policka is the appreciation of a good beer and a lovely, red wine, and I guess that would be okay in my book as well.

Sorry for the vagueness of this post; I feel like most of the time I'm talking around the 'real' idea, which I believe is a consequence of not fully comprehending what exactly is in store for me this summer, and what has happened to me in Policka.

Fourth Sunday of Advent

The fourth Sunday of Advent has arrived, which means Christmas is just around the corner. To celebrate the coming of Christ, every year there is a Christmas play. However, this year was a little bit different. Instead of one play, we had three!

The first play was a poem by three sheep, who were played by the youngest children from the church. They were the sheep (baa baa baa) in the feild who saw the angels rejoicing and bright star that guided the wise men. The second was a play about angels going to school and learning about important humans (Adam and Eve, Abraham, and Mary), which was preformed by the sunday school class. And the final play was preformed by the youth group. It was about a conferance of God's angels talking about humans. The discussion was about how humans can't seem to do what is right (they fall into Satan's temptations). After studying man kind and presenting their results, the angels can to the conclusion that there was not one human that was without sin, and God would have to send someone intellegent, strong and handsom to help the humans out. The conferance ended with the angel Gabriel surprising the other angels when he said the savior had already arrived on earth; a child born in a manger in Bethlehem

Islam in Europe

There has recently been a lot of talk -- in the Czech Republic and around Europe -- about the rising flux of Islamic immigrants. Most of the public discourse revolves around the problems that arise when Muslim immigrants are reluctant to accept the cultural and civic expectations of their newly adopted nation. In the Czech Republic, the issue is not quite as pertinent, but in places like England, France and Holland, it is very real and serious. England has, I think, the most immigrants who are practitioners of Islam: Most of them coming from Pakistan. Great Britain as a whole has seen a rise in immigration since the 1970s, and now Muslims make up close to five percent of the total population. Most recently the nation of Switzerland passed a referendum banning the construction of Minarets; claiming that Minarets would "change the national identity of the Swiss people." In most main-stream European papers, and Czech ones, the issue is talked about as a problem of immigration: The newly-arrived immigrants do not make any concessions, nor do they attempt to conform to the society; therefore, creating cultural and often civic 'ghettos' that are part, yet separate from the culture at large. Obviously, this issue is complicated and goes way beneath the veneer of 'immigration and assimilation'.

Easily, it can be seen as an issue of race and cultural superiority, but I don't really want to get into that discussion, because on some level, that is inevitable: if the language, religion, art and laws are not respected by a minority group, racism and animosity are a sad, but very human reaction (not that this is OK and acceptable). In many of my conversations with Czechs about the issue, there are levels of race and prejudice involved, but I'm surprised to say that much of the European distaste and worry has more to do with civic engagement, rights and laws: there is the feeling that the state, not the racial "nation", but the 'Nation-State" --built and supported by governments-- is losing its power. This comes into clearer focus when Sharia law is used as a clear 'second-tier' form of justice, much like in England, where all domestic and some criminal disputes are not settled in the British courts, but in hidden Sharia courts in the backrooms of Muslim community centers.

In conversing with some of my friends about this issue, many of them were quite strong in their opinion that the Islamic immigrants should accept the laws and the culture of the state (not necessarily all the culture traits of the people). I found this rational and reasonable, but I'm not so sure I'm comfortable with this argument. For one, as a Christian, I take issue with the point that the State, or the nation should define my role as a human being, and that even my religion should be viewed in relation to my role as a Western citizen. I can see both sides of the equation: the animosity of having immigrants who don't seem interested in conforming, or even respecting the culture of the state; and the conflict that arises between people of faith and their obligations to their religion and their country. I guess this issue in America can look a little like the dilemma that affects the Amish when they choose not to join the military...

I really can't go much further in this post, because I am not educated or well-read enough to create any kind of firm statements about this topic. What I can do is tell you that this is a conversation and debate not just about immigration and race, but a conversation about the role of Western society, the enlightenment and religion/faith. It is this third aspect that has me yearning for a deeper discourse.

Two years ago, Rev. Rowan Williams (The highest ranking bishop in the Church of England) gave a lecture where he spoke specifically about law and its relation to people of faith. In this lecture, Williams alludes to some of the Sharia courts in England. Williams, who I respect and admire greatly, stated that the British state, in some respects, should accept aspects of Sharia law. Naturally, every single tabloid, and second-spot news station took the statement and demonized him vehemently; even calling for his removal from the Anglican Church. I've read the lecture and found it to be very dense and almost incomprehensible (it is an intellectual 'doozy'). But I encourage you to take a clear and focused look at it.

I would like to talk more about this, so feel free to message or 'skype' me--Dave Mesing:)

Here is the link to Rev. Williams' speech: http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/7233335.stm

Poem

Jamie and I have enrolled in a Czech Lanugage for foreigners class in Policka. There are two of us and three other Dutch people. It is a great time speaking Czech with foreigners, and seeing that I'm not the only one in Policka who can't seem to get my Czech grammar in order.

One of our recent assignments was to write a poem in Czech. The idea stemmed from the Dutch tradition of passing out poems to your closest family members to commemorate St. Nicholas day. Our Czech teacher thought it to be a wonderful tradition, so she told us to write poems; however, Jamie and I missed the whole point of writing poems 'about each other.' Since St. Nicholas day is this weekend, last night we were to read our poems in class.

Jamie and I both felt kind of silly, as none of our writing had to do with our fellow Dutch students, but we had a great time anyways.

For your enjoyment here are the two poems that we wrote:


Žaba, žaba (frog, frog)
malinká žába (little frog)
hop hop hop (hop hop hop)

a kam skáče ta malinká žába? (and where is the little frog hopping to?)
do obchodu? (to a shop?)
do školy? (to school?)
nevím, možná (I don't know, maybe)
do hospody! (to a pub!)

- Jamie


První rok s češtinou

Hle,

Jde to, jde to.
Ach, to je vedro.
Fakt jo?
Ach jo...

Pozdrav rodinu.
Všichni maji chřipku.
Doufám že mam jedníčku...

Česky? To je těžký.
Všechno nejlepší.
Mějte se hezky!

-Jeremy


My poem is a little more difficult to translate, because it doesn't make much coherent sense. I have entitled it 'My first year with Czech language." I wanted to write a poem that was a little satirical and a play on words. To do this, I went through my memory and picked out the most common phrases that I've heard in spoken Czech and put them together into a rhymn. Collectivley they make some sense, but the meaning is really only in my head and from my experience.

Our teacher thought they were great.

Velvet Revolution and remnants of Communism

I don't know if many of you know, but this week (Tuesday, Nov. 17th) marks the twentieth anniversary of the fall of Communism in the Czech Republic. Last week, I was able to watch the lights and glitter in Berlin, as the city commemorated the fall of the Berlin Wall. U2 was there and thousands of people, from all nations, flocked to the Brandenburg Gate to witness the spectacle and reminisce about the time when freedom was attained and borders were literally torn asunder. Fireworks blasted throughout the night, as Germans toasted to their unity. Expecting to see the same kind of reaction in Prague, I was shocked to discover that there will be no such celebration. There will be no parades. No fireworks. No public parties. No commemorative keys to be shook, or Czech flags to be waved. To the contrary, the celebration will be one of a personal nature; taking place within the homes, quietly out of sight. I guess it would be hard to call it a celebration at all.

It makes sense for a nation of just over 10 million to commemorate their 'Democratic Revolution' in such a quite way. After all, they suffered quietly. Germany has always been intriguing for the western world, and during the reign of totalitarian communism, it was split, straddling the Iron Curtain. The Czechs on the other hand, they are Slavic, so I guess it was only fitting that a Slavic nation would follow the 'Slavic mother', Russia. Yeah, to western eyes, it was unfortunate that the Czechoslovak nation, a former Democracy, was under the rule of Stalin, but they were always 'in the East'. The interest just wasn't there.

Still, my mind wonders, why don't Czechs take more pride in the fact that their 'Velvet Revolution' was a motivation to the whole world? It was completely non-violent. It was started by young students. It motivated the masses. And, it toppled an entrenched, oppressive governing body that lied and deceived its people. From the outside perspective, it was a revolution of "The Powerless" and should be commemorated as one of the greatest, human-rights triumphs of the 20th century. Yet, in the paper today, almost half of Czechs polled claimed to have 'no interest in commemorating, or celebrating the Revolution.' This, for me, is quite unfortunate.

This past weekend, a documentary was shown in Policka, entitled, "The Power of the Powerless." The film was American and it was not made for Czech viewing audiences. The film discussed the developments of the revolution and gave a historical overview of the nature of communist rule in Czechoslovakia. At the end, the documentarian began to criticize the Czech people (mainly the younger generations) for being infatuated with 'superficiality' and lacking any kind of 'rooted ideology'. He himself, a man who was witness to the Velvet Revolution of 1989, expressed shock and disbelief when he found that many young Czechs didn't even know that the Velvet revolution existed (almost unbelievable). He openly asked, "What is happening in Czech schools? What memories are they portraying in the society at large?"

In thinking a little more deeply about the fact that the Velvet Revolution here is met with an alarming level of apathy, I guess I must take quick glance and look at Western culture today. It seems to me that many Czechs are pretty fed up with their petty, often-bickering political leaders. In fact, just two weeks ago, there was an article in a newspaper, where the writer professed the necessity of a revolution every 20 years, to 'clean the system of the nation.' Also, I find that many in the older demographic are constantly fighting in a modern world that moves too quickly and is full of deception, tumult and violence. I think, that the reality and difficulty of building up a new western-style, capitalistic Democracy, from the rusted hulk of Socialism, has hit Czechs. Maybe they thought the transition would be easy and that life would automatically be 'better' from the get-go? In addition to the constant fluctuation of the market and the uncertainty of jobs, many Czechs feel bombarded with American pop culture, which is exported at an astounding rate. I've heard it described as "American Imperialism", which often gets me chuckling, if not annoyed. But, I guess there is something to be said here. If the people legitimately do feel threatened, be it from a cultural, monetary or emotional standpoint, then what is there to like about free-flowing, all-consuming capitalism of the Western world?-- which to many here is still viewed as an 'import'. In this light, maybe the Velvet Revolution looks a little negative: a group of naive students who managed to overthrow normalcy.

The last aspect I think of when pondering the memory of Czechs, is that some of them might not remember Communism as being that bad. After all, it was very clear from the start that the Communist Party had a clear message for the people of Czechoslovakia: "If you leave the business of government to us, we will leave you alone. You will prosper: you will have a car, a house, a job and enough money for your family." And, really, I think for most people, the fact that their intellectual, religious and civic freedoms were given up in a trade-off for security, was just a fact of life. If there was suffering, it was done behind closed doors, not on the street. And, just like that, Communism in Czechoslovakia became boring for many who lived it; slowly, but surely, the Communist machine manipulated information and re-focused the worldview of an entire nation. The waterfall was reached by incremental paddle strokes, not through fast-running, white-water. Maybe for some, the Communist promise of security still holds their mind captive? Just today, President Vaclav Klaus claimed that reason for continuous fear during the period of Communist Normalization in the 1980's was not there; instead, it is a recreation of those trying to re-tell history. But, how can Klaus know this for certain? A nation that was told to suffer indoors, is a nation severed from neighbors and community. It turns into a culture of distrust. And, this is how the Communists ruled.

Maybe the reason no one is celebrating the Velvet Revolution is because the effects of being "separated and conquered" still linger. No one really knows what the Velvet Revolution means to the nation, because no one really knows what Communism meant to the nation. And, in this way, the Red Star is still victorious (at least for some).

Fall Festival

Fall is definatly my favorite season because of the changing of leaves. The reds, yellows and oranges give normal landscapes a warm feel that last until the leaves have fallen and turned brown. Once the leaves are on the ground it makes walking anywhere an almost musical journey, and the smell of the leaves bring to closer to the earth. Some of my fondest memories of fall are of walking through the woods with color all around and leaves softly falling to the ground around me as I walk.

For many people in Policka, and other places all over the world, fall is a time for harversting crops, drying fruit, making jam, wine, cider and brandi (plum, pear or aprocot), cutting and drying hay and cleaning up their gardens before the winter. Every weekend is spend doing these things in hopes to get all the work completed before the first frost.

On Sunday Jan based his family sunday sermon on giving thanks for what we have; plenty of food, a place to live, education, and family and friends. It is a fitting sermon for the end of fall, because all the harversting has been completed and people are getting ready for the winter months. It is also getting close to the anniversary of the fall of communism, which is extremely important for Czechs, but also something the younger generations are forgetting about. He also talked a little bit about the American tradition of Thanksgiving and explained that it is a long tradition and carries back to the time of the early settlers. After the service Jeremy and I had a fall festival planned for anyone who would like to take part, both from the church and community.

The event started off with the story of Johnny Appleseed (featuring Jeremy as Johnny Appleseed) and then went into crafts and snack. With the help of some friends we were able to make candles, homemade butter, yarn doll, god's eyes, and popcorn necklaces all at the same time! There were kids switching from station to station and even some adults made a candle or yarn doll. There was also a demonstation on combing and spinning wool and quilting. Our helpers all dressed up, which really brought the event to life, and everyone who attended had a good time. Afterward, the congragation had lunch together, which was the perfect ending to the morning.

Personally I was really excited about the event because it is close to home. Around this time there are fall festivals all over the east coast (mainly New England to Virgina)and I remember going to them as a kid. There were pumpkins, apple cider and hayrides. So for me, I wanted to show our friends here a little bit about where Jeremy and I grew up through the fall festival by having tradition crafts, making pumpkin cookies and apple bars, and dressing as if we were from the 18th centry. Of course this is not the only thing that represents where we grew up, but it was nice to share it with them. I would like to have a day were we talk about Pennsylvania and why Jeremy and I call it home.

Went to Krakow and found out that WWII was pretty crappy__dude.

Jamie and I took a much-anticipated trip to Poland this past weekend. It was a great time for us to unwind after the hectic planning that comes with the Halloween Party. I felt quite pleased as our train departed form Policka, because I knew that we had left on a good note: the Halloween Party was a complete sucess and our plans for the 'Fall Festival', which is this upcoming Sunday, were coming along nicely.

Krakow (Cracow, Cracov, Krakowa--I've seen it spelled so many ways) was surprisingly beautiful. If there is any country in Central Europe that I know the least about, Poland is it. Pretty much all I knew/know about Poland has been passed down to me either through the Polish-Catholic traditions of Ambridge (D-Woz REPRESENT with the pierogis), the movie 'The Pianist', the Holocaust, or the racially-charged 'Polak' jokes that never paint the Polish 'nation' in a good light. Needless to say, when I stepped off the train onto a boulevard that was quite wide, lined with relatively-new lamp posts, paved with beautiful cobblestones and surrounded by shops, my preconcieved notions instantly took a shot. I don't really know what I expected: maybe I thought many of the plaster facades would be crumbling and that there would be graffiti-covered bridges dotting the city? Well, whatever my mind had pre-imagined was quite far from the truth.



The city is located on the River 'Wiev' as it winds its way north to the Baltic Sea. In the southern part of Poland one will find beautiful vistas of sweeping mountains (much like the Appalachians) and rolling hills. Houses are dotted throughout, with the main concentration of towns lying within wide-open valleys. The Mountains rise on a gradual incline, so the feeling is not one of claustrophobia--think The Alleghenies, not West Virginia. As one travels about 50 kilometers north from the border with the Czech Republic, the country flattens out into plains; this is what most of Poland is comprised of. I guess to the 'untrained' eye, the landscape could look a little bit 'boring', yet its subtleness is what I loved about it. Gazing out the window of the train I looked directly into the woods; there were leaves of yellow and orange, and because the land itself was on such an even plane, it seemed as if the forest carried on forever. It was just a maze of earthy, fall colors with narrow roads leading to villages and churches tucked away, hidden. Every now and then, we would break out into the open and I would see farm fields radiating out from a central point--usually a town or a village. The remnants of the communist past are everywhere, as the flatness of the landscapes only exacerbates the height of the hideous, monolithic, communist 'block houses' reaching upwards towards the heavens; towering above even the church steeples.

Those of you with a very preliminary knowledge of the history of WWII would still be aware of place called Auschwitz (Oswiecem in Polish). Auschwitz was/is the most notorious of the Nazi concentration camps (along with its sister camp, Birkenau). The number of people murdered - in the most 'modern'/'efficient' of ways - is literally unknown. Growing up I heard about how meticulous the Nazis were in documenting their atrocities, which is true, when they were killing 'enemies' who were deemed 'worthwhile' to document; Jews did not fit this bill. Instead, the vast majority of those gassed, shot, starved, burned or hung were done so IMMEDIATELY upon exiting the train. They dropped their suitcases, stripped off their clothes and ran towards their death, naked. They had no papers, no registration and no numbers tattooed into their skin (Auschwitz was the only camp to tattoo prison numbers. They did so because people were dying so quickly that prison officials couldn't keep track of how many people had passed through; however, the practice lasted only the first 2 years of the camp. After that, it was a free-for-all of killing without conscience).


Located only 50 kilometers from the main city of Krakow, Auschwitz was the destination of many Polish political prisoners and Jews. Before the war, Krakow had a thriving Jewish population of around 60,000; today, that numbers stands at exactly 120, and they're all old. If you walk around the Jewish sector today, there is nothing living; the whole quarter is on gigantic museum: most of the former families were killed, or have since emigrated to Israel or the United States.

Krakow was also the location of the most notorious Jewish 'Ghetto' and the site of Oscar Schindler's factor, which itself has a dark secret to tell. In the movie that was directed by Steven Spielberg, we come to admire Oscar Schindler as a light within a dark forest, a man who worked within the system to subvert it. However, in real life, things were a little more complicated: to be 'written' onto one of Schindler's lists, Jewish families had to pay a sum of 500$, which at the time was about 5 years pay--a veritable fortune. Additionally, if that didn't ruin your rosy picture enough, it was found that many of the Jews on the list were ones who had family members working for the Nazis as Gestapo informants. I didn't take this 'tid bit' as a great shock, as I've come to expect that all historical 'facts' have an underbelly to them, which itself usually challenges the 'factual title'. But we often ignore it; choosing to let history conform to our notions and memory; therefore, dulling and diluting it.

I guess one really can't go to Poland without hearing SOMETHING sad. The country itself, even before WWII and the Communist era, has always dealt with war and human atrocities. From Kings and Queens, to Napoleon, to Hitler, to Stalin, it has forever been Europe's battle ground. I can't think of a more fitting illustration than this: Poland is the only European nation that lacks its original Crown Jewels and Throne. Catherine the Great of Russia melted them all down to make money and, fittingly enough, her toilet bowl.

Happy Halloween

Halloween came early in Policka (Oct. 27th) but no one seemed to mind. Both kids and volunteers were just as excited as ever, and they had good reason! This year we turned the sanctuary of the church into a haunted maze, which meant tons of bed sheets, rope and boxes, as well as candles, tombstones, jack-o-lanterns and ghosts (everything to make a confusing journey through the sanctury a bit more fightening). Upstairs we had games, candy and other prizes, a spooky snack and a costume contest.

Our party started at 6pm and volunteers came at 5:30 to help with some finishing touches (putting bike lights and glow sticks in the maze) and kids started arriving at about quarter to 6. I must admit I was shocked by the number of kids waiting when I went upstairs to welcome everyone to the party (40 kids and 10 adults). The main part of the party was the haunted maze, but everyone couldn't go through it at once, so upstairs we had games and prizes to keep them busy while they waited for their turn to go through the maze. After going through the maze kids either told me they wanted to go again or that it was really scary; both responses were good to hear. The party was a success. The kids all went home with a smile and a bag full of candy.

Jeremy and I had a lot of help setting up the maze and game room the day before, as well as on the night of the party. We would like to thank everyone who helped, especially those where were upstairs with me and those who were in the maze being scary. The party would not have been as great a success without your help. Thank you. Also, a special thanks to those who sent us things for the party from the U.S.; the kids had a great time. Thanks for all your help :)

Quick update

This past Saturday, Jarda and I had our first interview with Mila Plecharcek. It went fairly well, besides the fact that I had to continually switch between English and Czech, which made the whole 3-hour process completely exhausting for me. First impressions, from my side, are encouraging, yet I am leery. I realized that after our first interview that this project will be a lot of work: I must translate most of what I record, questions need to revised, my Czech must improve and I need to have a clear goal. All in a days work...

I've also been living with an eye towards next year. Jamie and I have been searching for new jobs and opportunities, as we both understand that our remaining 9 months will literally be a blink. I am excited to tell you that I have decided (tentatively) to join Americorps VISTA. This program is geared more towards adults who have experience and are willing to work with a non-profit to fight poverty all over the United States. The Vista program is excellent in the fact that it bestows more responsibility upon the volunteer to DEVELOP and implement programs that address the causes of poverty. With my history of work, I feel that I am able to apply my skills to a wide array of needs within the Americorps program: ecology, environmental sustainability and management, counseling, youth interaction, community development, adult education, economic development, etc... The greatest worth of the program is that it gives me an excellent opportunity to really 'flesh out' if this development 'work' is for me. I would like to go to graduate school, so I feel that the 12 months that I'm in the Americorps program will be a wonderful tool in assessing my own skills and passion for that kind of work. Also, you never know, I might get a permanent job out of it. :)

Jamie is searching for work in Environmental Education; she would like to be a director or have an administrative position.

Update

I wrote about a month and half ago that I was planning on writing/researching for a historical paper that deals with the oppression of protestant pastors under the Communist Regime; focusing mainly during the period of 'Normalization.' I wanted to update you on this work.

Just this past weekend, I fished through a few of the resources I have attained. Many of them have come from Mila Plechachek himself, which affords me the very unique opportunity of actually being able to read first-hand documents. Everything is real. Nothing is scanned, copied or stored away in some box, on a shelf, in the dank room of a library. My Czech is still, foundationally, conversational (or as Czechs like to say, 'v Hospodě), which is a very different language than the flowerly writing of academia and the often cryptic reports from the StB; it has been quite a challenge. My picture of the situation is getting clearer every month, but I still feel as if I am viewing this story through clouded lenses, or atleast, ones that are warped.

Throughout the past month, I have been randomly receiving emails from both Americans and Czechs who have been encouraging me. I don't know how many of them are finding out about the project, but they have all said one thing in common: it needs to be done. One of the realizations I have come to see, is that this 'history' that I am researching/talking about isn't very old at all. The Fall of Communism only occured 20 years ago--this year, in fact, marks the anniversary--which gives me hope that in a VERY small way, I am able to pay tribute to those who did suffer and did fight for political freedom. It is my small gift for them. In addition, while the church DID play quite a large role (Catholic and Protestant) in protest actions against the government, there has been surprisingly very little written about it. Of course, there have been many studies and some books published, but for the most part, a lot of the academic work has come from within the seminary or the denomination itself. There is nearly nothing written in English.

I don't want to call this paper an academic one, because I don't believe I can write an academic paper. It is a project rooted in personal interest. Many of these pastors have come to be my personal friends, so it is also a way for me to understand them on a deeper, more real level. There is still A LOT of work that needs to be done and I am just at the very beginning. My friend Jarda, a student of history at Charles University, has offered his assistance. We will be working together. I am also relying, to a large degree, on many of my friends in Policka who have helped me translate and write quetsions (thanks Madla!). Jarda and I will be meeting this weekend to discuss our next plan and to really get the 'ball rolling'. I plan on having many of the interviews completed by the end of winter, which means, it is time to get started.

Reflections

Walking to work this morning I had to step over the brown/blackish snow-sludge that accumulates on the roadways; cover my bare chin from the stinging, blowing winter wind; clear the lenses of my glasses, so I was able to see properly; and, fight the 10 or so flakes that fell from 34,000 feet and somehow landed, of all places on this earth, in my eye. Today was an emphatic end to the season that we call fall. Snow has been coming down, consistently, for the past two days; this morning is by far the strongest. To say that Policka appears as if it is in the middle of February would be accurate.

The snow has found me in quite a relfective state. For the first part of this month, and the end of September, I chose not to post anything on the blog. Part of it was due to laziness, yes I admit, but another aspect was that I don't find many of my daily experiences that interesting/englightening/challenging anymore. Last year, there was always something to write about. Maybe it was the first snow, which ironically, came quite late. Or, I felt compelled to let you all in on a funny experience where a cultural exchange occured. Or, I relayed some deeper thoughts and struggles that I had had in adjusting to life here in the Czech Republic; however, this year, my experience really feels and is different.

I'm not so sure if I should call this year a year of 'change' or a year of 'comfort', because it really is neither. Yeah, my life situation in less than 10 months will be drastically new: I will no longer be here in the Czech Republic (hard to imagine), Jamie and I will be working COMPLETELY different jobs with unknown friends, we will most likely be speaking English all day every day, and we will be living somewhere, across the ocean, on a continent, that consists of only three gargantuan-size nations. Change is what I need to prepare for.

Yet, as I was writing earlier, the emotional and cultural struggles of a year ago are not nearly as strong. There aren't many days where my perception or my engrained attituded (which is often cultural in foundation--more than I like to admit) are sabotaged. I feel quite confident that I can adapt to any social situation that I am in, because I have enough of a precedent to have a firm conviction of how the Czech people will react to a certain statement, challenge or expressed opinion (of course this is not true for EVERY Czech person). I have grown to feel a little more connected within the network of the Policka community and Czech is becoming less and less of a barrier to communication every single day. I am comfortable. I feel excellent about these developments, but I must remember not to slide into complacencey. I must remind myself that each day there STILL is something to learn and that my Czech excursion WILL be over shortly. I have to try to live it.

One of the most terrifying possiblities, is that upon my return home, I will look back and regret that I didn't travel enough, or do a better job of cultivating relationships.

But, enough about the end. I have to think about now, today: the snow, the quaint baroque square with its dressings drapped in white, my favorite pub, the stars that peak out from behind the gothic steeple and the farm fields manured and plowed, prepared for the long slumber underneath frost.

paintings

There next ones are not paintings, but my first attempts at print making :)

more to come

Caramel Apple Pops

Before coming to the Czech Repulic I bought a bag go caramel apple pops at Odd Lots (Big Lots for those of you who dont work at camp) in Bellefontaine, OH. I should have bought two, since they are so hard to come by, but hidensight is 20/20. The other day I realized that I only have 3 left. Yes it saddened me that my favorate candy is almost gone, but more so because of what these lolly pops have come to represent in my life.

I remember when they first came out in 1995, I was in 5th grade, and they were the "cool thing" to have, plus they were great tasting, so would buy them when I had the chance (our school store sold them for a quarter). I would eat them on the bus ride home with my friend Amanda while we played cards (she always kicked my butt) or made string friendship bracelets. They lasted longer that most suckers because the caramel would get stuck our teeth and roof of our mouths and would take the entire hour ride home to eat.

They also remind me of highschool football games, because a friend of our family, Dave Jasek, would being a bag of suckers (caramel apple pops and tootsie pops) to every GM football game. After graduating, I would come back for some GM games and always make sure I had a lollypop for Dave since he has generously suppied our cheering section with them for atleast the 8 years I had gone to games.

Consiquently, since moving to Policka I have had a caramel apple pop in a cup on our desk with pens and scissors, as a reminder of home. So I guess this brings me to my shameless plea. If someone could send a bag of caramel apple pops it would really make my day (plus, we have some friends here that I have shared them with and I'm sure they wouldn't mind having another one :) )

thoughts on our first year

Recently I have been thinking about our first year...what exactly does that mean? Our first year in the Czech Republic or our first year of marriage? For us, the two can't be seperated, so this post will be about both of them. I know that in the past Jeremy and I have shared a lot about our activities inside and out of the church, but not really about our personal struggles and joys. I feel like this is a good time to do so.

Newly weds in a new country
We got married four months before moving to the Czech Republic, and I would say that we had an ideal situation. We both worked at a YMCA camp as naturalists, where we had friends, a community, our first home, and it was comfortable. It was there that we started our transformation from girlfriend/boyfriend to a married couple. Those of you who are married know that this can be both fun and frustating, because no longer are you living only for yourself and your well being, but you need to make adjustments to your lifestyle to met the needs of the other person. Cooking dinner is a good example of this. I might want to eat soup, but Jeremy would want to eat pasta; therefore, we would have to come up with some other option that both of us could agree on. So we had alot of adjustments to make.

After coming to the Czech Republic it felt like we needed to re-do all of the adjustments we had made in Ohio, plus more, since we now lived in a completely foreign country. Honestly, I underestimated how difficult this change would be. Not only did we need to a adjust to the language, culture, food and people, but also the reactions of one another while these adjustments are taking place. For example, going to the grocery store. In the united states I know what I can and can't buy at the grocery store, but here I'm still trying to figure this out. During our first few months here, the grocery store was a stressful place full of people with carts, narrow isle ways, and ofcourse everything being in Czech. It would take me about forty minutes to find half the things I was looking for and I would come home frustrated because I couldn't find something, or I couldn't understand that the cashier said to me, or the person behind me was pushing their cart into my butt in hopes to making me go faster. I would then tell Jeremy about the experience in hopes that he would understand and help me to feel better. So we had new emotional struggles that we needed to help each other deal with.

I am an introvert and Jeremy is an extrovert. This combination can be good for sometimes, like planning things, but adds a level of stress to other things, mainly social interations. In the U.S. this was not as apperent, because there was never a time when we could not make our needs clear to someone, and I knew how to deal with my introvertedness. After our move I was completely out of my comfort zone and felt like I was drowning at time. There were so many emtional stress, but the biggest was learning a new language, which effected everything we did. Jeremy took the lead in most social settings since his Czech was better, and I was afraid, but this put an incredible amount of strain on him. Our first year I didn't do a good job of supporting him and practicing the language with him, which has created a wide gap in our ability to communicate in Czech, but also made him feel that he is was let down in a time of need.

Old hat
We came into a program that was going into it's 6th year. A group from Oklahoma, who knew Pastor Jan and his family, had been coming to Policka for 5 years to do a English summer camp at the church. After the 3rd year of camp, a young woman from the group, Kati, stayed to teach English out of the church year round. She stayed for two years and we were hired to take her place and add new ideas to the already existing program. I found this was more challenging than I thought it would be, mainly because the first year I didn't have a single helper for my seven kids classes. I had to rely on a dictionary and the higher level kids for communication, because my Czech was not at a level where I could help them understand what I was saying in English.

Another challange was the feeling that we needed to live up to the past programs. Which meant that we needed to really think about how to make existing programs, classes and the halloween party, as good as, if not better than in the past. Ofcourse this is difficult to do since we weren't here, and we can only go off of what Kati wrote on her blog and what the kids tell us they did and liked. My most feared phrase in class was "we already did this with Kati" because it meant not only that the kids would not listen to me while I explained what we were going to do, but also that it was nothing "new and exicting" for them. We did plan some completely new events, which were sucessful, but for the most part, it didn't seem like people were interested in coming. It was like they were tired of coming to events at the church being led by Americans.

I would say the most suprising challenge that arose stemmed from us being second in line. On a number of occations people would tell us how much easier it is for us since there are two of us. They would tell us how lonely Kati was, or how difficult it was for her to adjust. I would like to think that people were just trying to make us feel better, but it had the opposite effect. It made me feel like my struggles and feeling of loneliness were unwarented. Yes, Jeremy and I had one another, but we spent our first year not knowing anyone in our appartment building or really anyone outside the church. We did make some wonderful friends, whom we can never express how much their friendship means to us, but it was and is still lonely at times. I don't want to make this sound like I am saying that our time here was more difficult than Kati's, I just want to show that our struggles looked a little different.

We have about ten months left in Policka, so there is still more to learn and see, and ofcourse more people to meet. I would like to ask that you keep Jeremy and I in your thoughts. I would be a great deal to us. Peace.

New(ish) paintings

More to come :)

Racism in the CZ

One night while staying up and watching television (for language practice, geez!), I came across a program entitled, Mate Slovo? In English, this is directly translated as, 'Do you have words?', but more for our purposes, the REAL emotional/grammatical translation would be something like this, 'Do you have an opinion?'. The show is probably on late, because no one from the 'average viewing audience' would have any interest in the topics and themes that are brought up, as many of them are political in nature and I'm sure that bickering and frustration follows suit in about 80-90 percent of the episodes (think of Bill O'Reilly). But for me, the night I tuned in, the topic was really provocative.

The format of the show runs like a panel discussion, where you have one host (usually a nubile women in her early 20's that seems out of place asking questions about economic policy and liquidity--but, hey, you gotta get the 'viewers' some how!?) proposing a question and then hearing the answers from about 5 or 6 'experts.' Normally, the question or issue is posed as one that could be 'answerable', when in fact it isn't, because the inherent dichomoty of having seperated 'experts' each giving one-sided opinions to a question/issue that requires a holisitc answer is quite fruitless; but, I was sure it would make for some explosive-television entertainment. The theme that was to be discussed was, "Racism in the Czech Republic. Why is it so powerful here?" If any of you know me, then you know I HAD to watch.

The resident panel for that night was made up of the Minister of the Intrastate Safety Board of the Czech Republic; the Mayor of the Jewish community in Prague; the Mayor from a medium-sized, Czech city with Roma 'issues'; two Roma rights activists and one newspaper journalist, who has written extensivly about the issue. To get the conversation started, the minsiter from the Czech Government, claimed that he understood the worries of the Roma population within the Czech Republic (remember that due to the fact that the CZ is very homogeneous in population, the race quetsion is normally relegated to the Roma and a few asian, immigrant groups), but felt that sometimes the claims of violence are a little bit too extreme: he felt that they were effectively yelling "fire in a theatre" to get the attention of world at large. And, really, from that statement, the panel discussion went down hill. Throughout the 30 minutes that followed, I was appalled and shocked to hear, coming from the lips of politicians, the most down-right, unthinking, typically, insulting answers as to why Roma are discriminated against, and how they effectively, "have it coming" (they are lazy, no Roma want to work, they rob houses, they have violent gangs, they don't speak Czech well, they are dirty, etc...). The moderator did an admirable job of keeping all the opinionated 'bulls' (I'll call them that because they were all men with head-strong arguments) in line and on topic, but it just didn't seem to work so well. I'm sure that some of the politicans were trying to make populist points in their statements, and I'm also pretty sure that the Roma activists were not doing the best job of taking some of the responsibilities for their communties lack of educational and parental support. But for the most part, I felt that all of the 'experts' weren't taking the issue seriously enough to admit that it is a little bit more complicated than the fact that the Roma have dirty houses and that they are lazy.

Czech people have a lot of pride in their nation, which is one reason as to why they probably don't want to engae the issue on a deeper level than making blanket statements that push the blame onto the 'other' almost entirely. This is not just relegated to the Czechs, we Americans have a had this problem in the past and today, but I do think that at this time, in the Czech Republic, their civic nation is just starting to deal with some problems of immigration and 'national identity', so some of their political and social responses, to me, seem a bit immature. I don't want to make this issues of race in the Czech Republic seem very easy, because it really is not; however, in some instances, I wish Czechs could look at some of their traditional tendencies (mainly in regards to thinking/history) and see that there are some roots and seeds within their own cultural paradigm that make a racist worldview more conducive for growth and fruition.

To make this a little bit more understandable, I will use a specific topic that was proposed during one of the segments of the show: why is Nazism such a strong ideology in the minds of Czechs? In answering this quetsion, we have to remember the roots of Nazism and the cultural landscape that led to its rise. Again, not trying to make it too simple, but at the same time trying to think this out on a tangible level, I honestly believe that one of the strongest foundational underpinnings for Nazisim was the humiliation and broken pride of the German 'nation' after WWII (I have quoted 'nation', because for Europeans the word 'nation' has a more nuanced definition than the one we use in America. This has roots in both of our respective histories, but just for your knowledge, 'nation' in Europe does NOT signify the Civic State, but the ethnicity, the culture, the language, and even the color of a people; in Czech, this word is 'Narodnost'). In a not-so-small way, the Nazi movement is a vainglorious way of looking at one's standing in the world (which might work, until you have people like Jesse Ownens come and 'inconveinetly' call it out for what it is...). But, what does this have to do with Czechs?

Well, since were talking about Nazism, we have to remember that it is an ideology. From living in the Czech Republic for a year, I have grown to see that Czechs are very terrified of the idea/word ideology. I would say that many of them, who think like this, relegate the concept to just politicl worldviews and religion: both in a more negative sense than a positive; therefore, Czechs are afraid of being 'brainwashed' ( a word sometimes used to describe the workings of the Christian Church within this country) into being forced into any kind of ideological living that 'imposes' upon them certain rules (can you see how 40 years of repressive Communism might have made them 'gun shy' for any more ideology?). But we humans, whether we like to admit it or not, will never be able to get away from living a life that in some way or form is shaped by a paradigm, a praxis, or...an ideology. Sometimes we may choose to align ourselves with more 'free-spirited' or 'open-minded' worldviews that seem 'safer' on the outside than the liturgical life of a Catholic, or the 'dehumanizing' life of an Islamic woman. But in the end, it is still the same, whether that life is packaged as 'rationalism', 'marxism', 'materialism', or, and the one that is most relevant in this conversation about the Czechs, 'atheism.'

I guess what I am trying to say, is that the question of race, within in the Czech Republic, is also one of religion/theology (whichever one works better for you). Of course the public discourse on the matter of racism and its problematic manifestations within society should encompass economic, political, social and educational reasons, but if the Czech society at large continues to ignore the theological/philosophical/relgious aspect, well then, in my opinion, they can never begin to think creatively enough to engage in meaningful, reconciliatory conversation.

Most Czechs say that they are atheist. As an atheist, they too are still making a claim of 'allegience' to something, or sometimes, to someone. In parallel fasion, my Christian self makes an allegiance to God and to all the beauty that IS creation (art, music, humanity, nature, animals, etc). Therefore, it would have to be that my highest allegiance will always be above ANYTHING that has been created by the hands of man, including, the 'nation', the 'narodnost' and the civic state. However, for an atheist, each one can be a little different: Jim might find that 'peace and love' are his foundations on this earth; Susy might find think that 'being a good person and living a healthy life' are most important; and Bill, he might find his deepest root in his flag, in the stories of his 'nation' and in the language of his literature, songs and poetry. It is this last one that, I feel, holds powerful sway in the CZ.

I would have to give you about another two paragraphs as to why Czechs are so proud of their nation, because in many instances, they do have a lot to take pride in, but I'm not going to do that. However, I will say that sometimes Czech nationalism arises from a feeling of inferioirty or 'smallness.' It does have to do with their history: the fact that they have not been able to be a free, independent state for most of their existence and that they really are small in comparsion to their neighbors, has bred within in them a first reaction of defensiveness, where they have to proclaim their right as a people and as a culture to exist. Therefore, when their 'narodnost' perceives threats from the 'outside', maybe by way of immigrants or the Romas themselves, they have to fight it 'tooth and nail.' This problem is only exacerbated by the fact that many Czechs, who refuse to claim a 'religious' ideology, define their deepest existance not in creation, but in the Czech nation itself. Through this, there is no room for 'true' reconciliation, because people who come from a different 'narodnost', will really never be a 'part' of the nation, of the family, or of the country. Instead, they will be percieved as a threat when their numbers are too large for comfort.


I don't want to make this issue seem really simple, because it isn't at all. There is so much that I don't know about this culture and about their history with the Roma that I feel really unqualified to even talk about it. But, I just wanted to get some of my thoughts down....

Also, I don't want it to seem that ALL Czechs are like this. Just like in our country, there are a few radicals; the vast majority of people do not fit into this critique.


Sorry if this was too long, too poorly written, or just confusing...

Balkan livin'

For the past seven days, lounging around on the beach was the activity of preferred choice. NO, it was the most important option of the day, even greater than bathing and changing clothes...

Before our trip to Croatia, I really didn't know too much about the place; the language, the customs, the history, heck, even the weather were all quite mysterious. In fact, here is a summary of what I did know about this often-misrepresented, Balkan nation:
1. It once was part of old Yugoslavia.
2. Because it was once a province of Yugoslavia, I inferred that one of the greatest engineering marvels ever to be pieced together by the hands of man originated from its rock, desolate hinterland: the YUGO automobile.
3. There was a terrible war there 10 years ago.
4. Jake Nelko's ancestry is Croatian.
5. During the steel mill era, there must have been lots of immigrants from Croatia, due to the ubiquitous, sun-faded 'Croatian Club' signs that dot the corners of every former mill town up the Ohio Valley.
6. There was a Crusade there in 1214 where Christians fought fellow Christians (Catholic vs. Orthodox).

that's about it...

Consequently, when I found out that about 5,ooo,ooo (a little exaggerated) Czechs go there every summer for vacation, I was very much surprised. Whenever they would say Croatia, my mind instantly went to an old photograph that I had seen in a book entitled, America in the Age of Genocide. The picture was taken some time in late nineties, during the war with Serbia, where many Croatians were being placed into work camps, where ultimately many of them would die due to malnutrition and brutality. In the forefront, there was a gaunt looking Croatian man, who was completely naked. I could see all of his ribs and his face was so sunken in that it appeared as if you could cut your fingers on the sharp angles that made up his jaw. He was bald, and propping him up, as I'm sure his knobby knees were not up to the challenge of holding up his bony frame, was a medical doctor. I couldn't believe the picture, because it seemed as if it should have appeared in some large collection of photographs from the holocaust. But, it wasn't from some long-off war where photos were black and white. I could see color. I could see the pain in his deep, brown eyes. I could even see the caked on dirt that made him appear darker than he really was. It wasn't a tan; the man was just filthy.

That was the Croatia that I knew and read about. Vacation destination did not fit into the picture...

When Jamie and I found out that we would have about two weeks in August to travel, we initially wanted to wander over to Slovakia and hike in the beautiful Tatra Mountains. But we jumped on the idea of Croatia for two reasons: one, our friends from Camp Willson (Laura and Ben) were working there for the summer; and two, I hadn't been to the beach in about 3 years. Croatia also afforded us the opportunity to 'Czechify' ourselves even more, by engaging in a rite of Czech culture: taking a tour bus to your vacation spot ( we ended up being the only non-czech citizens on the bus, which made for a few comical situations at the border control, when the drivers thought EVERYONE was Czech; they were a little bit surprised to find that two Americans were amongst the sea of Bohemians...).

Jamie and I rode a 17-hour bus all the way to the city of Split, Croatia ( by the way, Croatia might have the coolest town/city names in the world) on the southern coast. We drove through Austria and Slovenia to get there (it still amazes me how small Europe really is: we cruise through countries like they are nothing but states). Split is quite fascinating, because it was the location for the Palace of the Roman emperor Diocletian, so some of the buildings there are over 1,500 years old. Amazing, right!? Who would of thought that in Croatia I would see ionic pillars and Roman tile work? Split was quite touristy and seemed as if it was the popular vacation destination for hordes of Germans, Czechs, Polish and Italians. People say that 10 years ago, it was a completely different story,because of the fighting going on in the country side: you would never have guessed it from the sleek, trendy shoe boutiques and the seaside cafes that served up some pretty over-priced wine. The city center is one large pedestrian zone, so we could effectively walk anywhere we wanted without the fear of getting hit by some manic driver. Also, it was great staring at the pavement of the city, as it appeared that most of the stones had been placed there during its Roman foundation: gigantic white blocks that were so worn that you could easily slide on them, as if they were well-polished, wooden floors.

Most of our day was spent walking back and forth from the city to the beach. Jamie, Laura, Ben and I claimed a little section of the coast as or own by naming a slab of stone "English Rock," because each day it seemed as if there were either English, Australians or Americans sunbathing on it (one of the more interesting aspects of the Adriatic Sea, is how calm it is. There are no sand beaches along the shoreline, because the sea itself does not create enough force to wear rocks into small particles of base minerals. So, when you go to a Croatian 'beach', you have to expect it to be made up of stones or fairly large rock-outcroppings that drop right into the sea: this makes for some good 'cliff diving' into the water.) The water itself was beautiful shades of turquoise, emerald and deep blue; Jamie and I took advantage of this by using our goggles and exploring some of the life that pulsated under the slight ripples of the sea. It was truly fantastic.

About halfway through our week in Split, we all decided to take a bus to a different location about 15 miles north, to a town called Trogir. From Trogir (a beautiful medieval-era island city fit with monasteries, numerous churches and an old fort), we walked about one mile to an 'auto camp', where we pitched a tent and spent the next three nights sleeping along the coast under a few, sap-filled pine trees (sap is a pain to clean). It was so peaceful and quiet; we could sleep, read, eat and swim without the distraction of numerous tourists and drunk party-goers.

During my time in Europe, I have come to realize that my worldview and many of my opinions have their root and their sustenance in the soil of American culture, and when I am separated from that American cultural paradigm, I see that there are people in this world who legitimately do not think like me or American people. There are so many examples that it would be hard to name a few, but one that was consistently thrown back in my face, on this past vacation, was how 'Victorian' our culture is in regards to sexuality. In many Europen countries, it is completely normal to see male and female nudity on television or in movies. Now, for Americans, we usually block that out, or relegate it to HBO; however, in direct contrast to us, Europeans are much more uncomfortable with violence: often times I see a very graphic seen of CSI or from some American film, which would be completely acceptable for viewing eyes in the States, edited or scrambled out. In Croatia, I also learned that this laxity in regards to sex transfers over into the appropriate bathing suit attire.

It breaks down like this:

Children: there is no need for a bathing suit at all
Women (ages 16-55): Bikini style suit. No top.
Men: very small speedos that do not cover up backsides (or much of the front for that matter)

-You get the picture?

Enemy Character of the 2nd class

History can be a dirty business, but a redemptive one. In thinking back towards the past, one often has to open up old wounds or be held accountable to some action or statement that might have been made upwards of 20 to 30 years ago.

Is it worth it? Why do I need to get involved? Does anyone really care?

My friend Madla has been helping me with translation, and this week we worked on a document that is the most comprehensive, historical piece ever written about the relationship between the Czech Brethren denomination and the StB (statni bezpecnost)/KSC. The history is quite recent, so not surprisingly, not much has been studied on this topic: maybe it has to do with the fact that some are still uncomfortable talking about; others, are probably still living with the consequences. The document is 87 pages long and broken up into about five chapters. Some of the chapters deal with the preliminary theory of how the StB planned to influence and manipulate the CCE (Czech Brethren), the physical/practical application of that theory, a state breakdown of the pastors involved in anti-communist actions and a published list of communist informers. The research is in its preliminary stages, but I am starting to get a few glimpses of the larger story; and I've realized, that it is all gray.



An old pastor friend of ours, Mila Plechacek, is a great illustration as to how the past, here in the Czech Republic, still lives. I went to the gym yesterday in the late afternoon and stood outside of the entrance engaged in a light conversation with another women from the congregation. I noticed out of the corner of my eye a black, cocker-spaniel with her nose to the ground, hair fluffing up from her legs as she trotted along. I recognized this dog instantly. She is the beloved 'betty' of Mila. I was sure that they were both on a stroll, so I brought my head and followed the leash to its anchor point--Mila's hand. He noticed me first, and before I could say anything, he yelled my name. Normally, one of us would cross the street, give a small greeting, but today Mila saw my prior commitment (being at the gym and talking to a friend) so he decided to continue on. I watched him as he plodded along at a pace as if he was walking through a garden of marigolds and plum trees. I thought to myself, that in all the world, there couldn't be anyone more gentle( His smile is perpetual, which lends to its under-appreciation: usually, I notice a smile only because of the contrast between that person's resting expression, not with him, I sometimes don't notice it because it is always there). (sorry I'll get on the point)



That same morning, as I was perusing the pages of the StB memos, I came across the code name, 'Helvig'. Helvig was considered a dangerous personality who resided in the North-Eastern Czech state (today it is the State of Pardubice, my state). The report said that this man was a pastor who had been an original member of the 'New Orientation', which was a dissident group rooted in the CCE. The StB had planned a 'pressure' procedure against Helvig, in hopes that they could get him to leave the area ( in many instances, the Communist Regime would revoke working licenses, wire-tap houses, monitor correspondence and engage in long, exhausting interrogation procedures, all under the name of 'pressure'), as they were worried about the concentration New Orientation pastors in the North-Eastern Czech region. Officially, Helvig was an enemy of the 2nd class, because he had contacts with 'Capitalistic States', travelled abroad and had openly criticized the regime. In the end, they succeed in forcing him to move and later noted that he slowly distanced himself away from the actions of the N.O. Curious as to who this man might be, I went to the index of the book and went down the list of code names that the StB had given the 'enemies.' There were names like, The PASTOR, THE YOUTH, THE ROSE, THE IDEOLOG, and then there was HELVIG: Miloslav Plechacek (1939).

Watching Mila walk away with his dog, I wondered if he still thinks about the fear, the repression and the helplessness under the regime. Maybe he still sees some of the StB officers around Policka, the same ones who pressured him and his family to move, who watched his correspondence, who placed agents in the pub to hear his conversation. How has he forgiven? What does reconciliation look like? Does he still hold remorse?

In thinking and researching for this paper, I've come to the conclusion that maybe I should just make it a story of how they survived, how they forgave, how they lived and what lessons they learned (the pastors that is). History, in some ways, is the study of how ordinary people dealt and lived with processes that are often more powerful than they are. It is also the story of resilience, and a constant reminder of how we all need to do what is right when the opportunity arises. But, a more difficult question might be, how do we know something is wrong? And, how are we to act/react? Maybe the first step for all of us is to engage ourselves in the larger 'conversations' that are always in motion around us; we shouldn't be content with being comfortable, we must always challenge our worldview and speak up when we see perversion in our local communities, societies and our closest relationships.

Sometimes while reading the StB reports, I find myself laughing. I catch myself doing it and try to stop, but the schizophrenic and paranoid nature of the Communist Regime is comical. I mean, for real, how many times can they say, 'Capitalist, enemy states', 'Enemy personalities', 'pressure movements against the Government.' What does it even mean!? Then I realize that many times, these memos destroyed a family, imprisoned people for years and forced emigration away from homes, land and memories.

The next time I see Mila, I might have to ask him about his status as an 'Enemy of the Second kind'; but I hope that when I do it, he is holding Betty, displaying a smile and wearing his 'Route 66', jean-material apron. :)

Update

I, Jeremy Ault, have been guilty of laziness and being aloof. I am sorry family, friends, readers....

The past month since the English Camp has been wonderful and nerve-racking. My mind has been consumed with thoughts about the future, and as I plan for the next years and those thereafter, I am always reminded of the beauty and the necessity of staying focused on the NOW. It's just really hard to do both at the SAME TIME.

Today, I searched for jobs and graduate schools. I might have found some interesting propositions for work in New England and I have given serious thought to pursuing a career in International development; also, I am wading my options with graduate school, as I careen back and forth almost daily as to what my focus should be: language, history, geography, environmental sustainability, geology, international relations. Ughh...

Something of note that might be interesting for some of you back home, is that I have engaged myself in a small intellectual challenge: I will be researching and writing a paper that deals with pastors in the Czech protestant church and their lives under Communist oppression. I have found the early going very difficult, as most of the resources are only in Czech language, which is incredibly challenging when I am trying to get an overall picture of the situation, yet it's great practice. In fact, today I just thought about taking the paper in a whole new direction: the lessons learned about ministry when it was taken from them ( the communist party would often revoke the state licences to preach from pastors who were openly criticizing the regime; forcing many of them into jobs of hard labor). Hmm...we shall see...

Jamie and I just got back from wonderful three days spent in the Slovakian 'Mala Fatra', which is a small mountain chain running east of the Tatras. It was so beautiful and quiet: we hiked, read, worked with our hands, cooked and didn't take showers for a few days. How wonderful!?

At the end of this week, we will be heading to the Dalmatian Coast (Croatia) for a week of sunbathing and snorkeling (maybe). Two of our friends from Camp Willson will be spending the 8 days with us, so needless to say, I am STOKED.

That is if for now.

Dried Fruit

Today I decided I would try my hand at drying fruit. Last year our friend Daša had given us some dried and we both really enjoyed it (apples were my favorite and plums were Jeremy´s). Anyway, it seemed easy enough and I had a bag of pears and I bought some apples. Anna let me borrow her drying machine and told me the temperature settings for each kind of fruit. So I was set.

Well, it turns our that Jeremy is right when he said that I can burn just about anything. The pears must have been cut into too small of pieces, because they turned out rather hard and my first batch of apples were ranging from dark brown and crispy to almost raw. (Today I also bunrt our pea soup at lunch...maybe today is just a bad cooking day...) This is my first time drying fruit. I have made jerky before, but I never really cared if it got a little too hard, however, "too hard" dryed fruit is slightly less pleasing than crumbly jerky.

Even with my bad luck I have become extremely curious to which fruits would be good to dry. I would love to try pineapple, but saddly they are hard to find (and I'm not sure if you can use the canned pineapple rings...). It seems like the most popular things to dry here are apples, pears, plums, mushrooms, oranges for christmas, and herbs/plants/flowers for tea. I'm not sure if people dry meat, but I know that is something I would like to do. I think our neighbor Ivan dried some meat last fall because the hall has a very familiar smell one weekend.

English Camp 2009: Friday

English Camp 2009: Friday

Day 5: Last day of camp, and boy was it a great one!

The English camp finished with just as much fun and energy as it started. The only difference is that we have all met new people, made friends and shared experiences. I'm pretty sure that every kid has a signature or small note in their passport from each of the American helpers and most likely a few of the Czech helpers. E-mail and mailing addresses were exchanged and on each face was joy from the week and also sadness from knowing that camp was coming to an end.
Jeremy and I would like to thank everyone who was involved in the camp in anyway. Everyone did a great job, and we hope that you had as much fun as we did. We know that a lot goes into the camp (like housing and feeding the Americans and planning the trips and lunches) and we really appreciate the eagerness of the community to make the Oklahoma team feel welcome. We would also like to say a special thanks for everyone back in the US who was praying for the sucess of the camp, and also the team of Oklahomans who camp to put on the camp for a week. You all were great! You were full of energy and joy, so thank you. We could have never done it without you.
A lot picutes have been put online, so please we checking back to see if we have added any web pages.
http://www.mruk.cz/tabor/index.html

English Camp 2009: Thursday!

English Camp 2009: Thursday

Day 4 of camp!

In most camp situations day 4 is slow; the staff is tired, the kids are tired, and there isn't much enthusiam left. I am happy to say that this is not the case! Both the Czech and American teams are showing just as much joy and energy as Day 1, and the kids are definatly just as excited too. As I write I can hear the kids running around upstairs, laughing and clapping, as they play a game :)

Today the kids "travelled" through Africa, which ment learning about animals in Snack and Celebration station, making african style masks in Crafts, and "translating" from an ancient language into English in Surprise. In sports they learned some african games, like Mamba tag, and the oldest groups learned about african exports and why they are important to the world durning Celebration station.

In the afternoon the team will visit an old castle before going to dinner with a family from the community.

Thoughts and reflections from the team:

Sam Steele: "The people - adults, youth, and children - of the Czech Republic are children of God, just like us in America. The only walls are the ones we build!"
Barb Henderson: "There is much joy in my heart to be in 'English Camp'. Policka has so many beautiful children."

English Camp 2009: Wednesday!

English Camp 2009: Wednesday

Day 3 of camp! Woot Woot!

Today the students "travelled" through Asia! Which means that in crafts that make batik banners that had asia designs on them and in snack they learned about working together and being in a polite community, as they are in most Asia countries, by having to eat their snack while their wrist were tied to two different people. This was a challenge for some of the kids, but definatly they grew from. In celebration station the younger kids learned about emotions through dragons and the older ones discussed what it ment to protest something, and why you would want to, after watching a short picture video about Tibet. It was cool to see the protest signs that the groups came up with: No Fastfood, Save the Earth, More Reading and Less TV, etc.

The Surprise room was a little different, in that it did not have an Asian theme. Rather, each group learned specifically about their country and had to make a poster which they would present at closing. They were given facts, pictures, crayons and glue and told to be creative, and that is just what they were. I have posted pictures of all the country posters for you to see, so people check them out.

After lunch the team had a free afternoon to explore Policka. It was great to see the igerness of the czech volunteers to take them around and show them everything. It makes me smile even now thinking about how well the teen volunteers has accepted this older team.

Before going to dinner, the team was invited to attend a Pokec (talk show) which was hosted by the church band. The special guest was Chip Whipple! For thoughs who do not know Chip, this is his 6th English Camp and I think he is more excited every time!

Thoughts and reflections from the team:

Paula Denson: " I have observed the following:

1. How similar we (CZ and US) are in the things that we value most: family, home and pride in our heritage, as well as many who share similar beliefs and faith.

2. I love their happy nature when we get to know them in the Church and in their homes. They make me drop my serious cover and enjoy life!

3. I believe that Czech people are very giving and generous in all ways and I appreciate their sincere interest in each of us as we build relationships in Policka. "


Jody Whipple: " My first visit to the Czech Republic with the English Camp was four years ago. The kindness and generosity of the Czech people and their children has been an important part of my life since that time. I thank Policka for letting our team return to enjoy them, the scenery, architecture and hospitality of this beautiful village."