On Friday, after barely keeping it together during the day, the last thing I wanted to do was visit the village of Dóc. Burke and I were invited to Dóc by a student at Eötvös--not one of our students, mind you, just a student hugely interested in all things American. Ordinarily, I would never turn down an invitation for a home cooked meal by a student who actually loves English--but I'll admit, the thought crossed my mind on Friday, due to my personal circumstances. However, we decided to go for it. If nothing else, it would be a distraction.
We met the student at Mars tér and took the 35 minutes bus ride out to his village. He lives with his mother (teeny bit of English), father (nincs angolul) and younger sister, who is 8 years old and taking English for the first time this year in school. She was adorable and also, apparently, famished, so we started to eat almost immediately after arriving. Outside it was freezing cold and pouring rain, but inside, the house was warm and snug, and we felt instantly at ease and comfortable with them. We had a delicious soup with chicken, noodles, and vegetables, and then a main course of fried chicken breast with buttery, awesome potatoes. They also served us a cucumber salad and homemade fruit bars for dessert. They kept the pálinka coming throughout the meal, as well, which we washed down with orange soda. Not gourmet, but totally delicious and homemade! Nothing quite like eating a mom-made meal...mmmm...
The meal was punctuated by the little sister showing us her enormous collection of Hannah Montana and High School Musical 3 stickers, and singing her favorite American pop songs. The student wanted to know all about how he could move to Los Angeles for university, and begged us to explain to his mother that the United States is not a dangerous place. I think we did well, given the sizable language barrier! After dinner, we walked over to his grandparents house, for more dessert and Ameretto. (Warms you right up in freezing rain, by the way...) They were adorable and had a tiny "museum" attached to their house, which they showed us. It contained old clothes, some Soviet relics, vintage furnishing and old coins. It was such a cool little room. There was a mirror made from horse hair and dyed purple that I fell in love with, and could easily see on display at Anthropologie. The grandmother explained that her mother made it by hand. I would have given anything to have had my camera.
So. I think it's important to surround yourself with caring people, no matter where you are, when tragedy strikes your life. You can find these people in the most unlikely places, and they lift up your spirits more than you thought possible. Talking to my family and friends has also been a big comfort to me, and is almost like being there. Thank god for modern technology like Skype. It's incredible how close I can feel to home while being so far away.
Grief, for me, comes in waves. I've never had a death so close to home before, and it's taught me a lot about the way I process. It ebbs and flows, and when it flows, the best thing to do is allow it to wash over you and consume you completely. But when ebbs...it can't hurt to try to celebrate his full, happy life.
hahaha I like the clubbing part, I can totally see you and Burke busting out the moves and of course, the vocals. the part about that museum thingy next to the grandparents' house that's AWESOME, shit I would've loved to have been there for that night, that food sounds SO up my alley. love you guys and miss you lots. xx
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