Just a couple of blocks away from my house there is a local market every Saturday morning. Since I moved here, I have wanted to go check it out, but never was truly motivated to go on my own.
Today Cassie (one of my roommates), our friends Danny and Jason, and I all went to the market. It was really enjoyable, we wandered in and out of local bread and cheese vendors, saw a sign advertising the sale of woolly pig, and safely avoided talking to the woman who wanted to educate us on global warming.
As we were wandering through the market I saw a table strewn with the following items:
I had a couple moments of severe confusion. It all looked so familiar, yet it was the wrong place and the wrong time. I looked up to see a sign advertising baked goods from Prague.
My heart jumped! I was so excited and I knew instantly I would have to temporarily abandon my goal to not eat sweets.
As my stomach started to grumble and my mouth started to water, I slowly became aware of the fact that there was a gruff looking older woman standing behind the table.
I immediately and tactfully asked her where she was from, when she replied Prague, I switched over to Czech. I wanted her to know, that I speak her language and love her country. We spent a good amount of time chit chatting about nothing and becoming immediate best friends.
Her eyes lit up as she spoke Czech and spoke of her home. My guess is, that my eyes lit up as well.
It felt so good to be speaking Czech again. I don't get to speak it much, especially with a real authentic Czech Babicka (grandma). After talking for a while she gave me her phone number and told me to call her anytime I wanted to speak Czech. She then proceeded to give me a free piece of apple strudel.
The strudel was delicious, it tasted so authentic. I could have sworn that it was Sister Brouskova in Zlin that had made it.
The whole experiences filled me with warmth. It made me a bit homesick for my mission, for the country, and mostly for the people I loved there. It reminded me of how kind, genuine and giving Czech people can be. When I talk about Czech people I often emphasize the hard exterior they use to keep people at a distance. Today, however, I was reminded of the warmth they give the moment you are able to break through the hard exterior.
I love those people dearly. It amazes me what kind of impact they had on my life. I don't think I will ever get over my love for them. I imagine that even 30 years down the road, speaking to a Czech person will bring the same warmth.
So, I left the market today with a warm heart, a piece of strudel, and a phone number for a new friend. I think I will probably call her. The way I see it, everyone needs a Babi in their life. Who knows, maybe I will get some more strudel or maybe I could even talk her into making me some svickova.
He is truly living his dream. It was strange being there. I found myself oddly jealous of him and the life he has chosen. I don't think it is because he is an animator (that hasn't been a dream of mine since I was 14), but I think it is because he is doing something extremely amazing, and he is honestly happy and satisfied with what he is doing.
