22 April
We went to the cemetery this morning to clean a few gravestones in preparation for Easter. Nina does this a few times a year, for Easter, after winter and sometimes when her kids come from Siberia. We pulled weeds (Chris, Ruby and Mom, thought of you!!) and swept the earth nearby. Nina mixed cement to anchor the artificial flowers that she put into coffee cans. She wet down the stones and swept those too. Each stone showed the face of the deceased, plus his or her days of birth and death. I’m always fascinated by cemeteries, particularly Russian ones. The headstones are almost as tall as I am, often. They are imposing, serious, indeed…grave. We got out early and were there by 8:15. Good thing too, because by 10:15 it was getting hot. And of course we were in long pants and double layers on top. I did not bring a long sleeved t-shirt, and my tank tops are completely inappropriate out of doors here. Almost all women here wear traditional dress, and that means covering most of the body.
Very interesting discussions with Nina about gender roles. Not to type now. Mamura has just arrived with her laptop and internet connection. Greetings with 3 kisses.
Time to connect!!
Later in the day we "painted eggs" by boiling with onion skins. I learned not to touch them.
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