An excerpt from chapter 2.
" People today are quite separated. Even home gatherings, when the nearest and dearest come together around a big table, now seem archaic. “Urban solitude” at night clubs, cafes and restaurants is more common. Of course, folk festivals still take place on the streets – on a Town Day, Cheese Fare Week, and other special occasions. Joyful, beautiful and organized in style, they are not like the festivals of my childhood. But the new festivals lack the most important aspect – shared joy and unity of people. For this reason, I relish the memory of the Soviet “calendar” holidays observed in our village and all over the country. In the springtime, we had May Day (May 1st ) and Victory Day (May 9th). I remember these festivals through the eyes of an astonished child, as if it were yesterday. To the little child, everything seemed like a monumental event at the time. Holidays always brought something new to the village: a fountain… or a gazebo with benches… or a park statue like “The Oar Girl.”
Tables with umbrellas were set up outdoors – on the lawns,
in the forest, and at the borders of a grove. What a joy it was when merchants
filled the streets! Although the food came from the only cafeteria in the
village, where on weekdays the factory siren called people for dinner, it was a
true feast on those holidays! Different pastries were introduced – pies, cakes,
cookies, rum babas. There was a great assortment of ice-cream, including my favorite
fruit ice-cream for 7 kopeks or a cone for 15 kopeks.
Not everyone today can understand how glad people were to
have such a modest assortment. Now the shop shelves overflow with a wide
selection of food, and people are spoiled with choices. So what did we eat back
then? We ate meat only once a week – usually on Sundays or on special
occasions. Mom would give me 40 kopeks saying, “Go to the shop and buy mutton
for 20 kopeks and some beef with the other 20 kopeks.” Happily running to the
shop, I would be anticipating the meat croquettes we would have the next
day! The memories of those weekends
still warm my heart. Being awakened in the morning by tasty, tantalizing smells
made these the most enjoyable days of the whole week. Our kitchen had a southeastern
exposure, and I felt it when the sun was shining, as it usually was (or does
the sun always seem brighter through the eyes of a child?). Squinting with
delight, I stomped to the kitchen to have a look at mom frying croquettes and
baking meat turnovers. We had turnovers
almost every weekend! It was much better
than having kissel (a starchy drink) at the cafeteria and cod-liver oil in
kindergarten!
But it is true that man
does not live by bread alone. Looking back on the celebrations, we were
attracted to them not only by the culinary delights, but also by the atmosphere
itself. Everything was cheerful and cozy. It felt like home. Above all, we
liked having the adults play with us and have fun, just like kids. They were
relaxing, drinking a little (there was always some beer at such events), and
socializing. Those were the true celebrations!"
Ivan and Alexander
Alexander grew up in this apartment building
