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50 stories - Dr. Maria Staykova

25 July 2022 Events and Discussions

Canberra

Biochemist, neuroimmunologist and writer

 

Festivals

In the architecturally unusual building of SBS in Melbourne there is an award from the Union of Bulgarian Journalists. I presented the bronze plaque five years ago, at the exciting and elegant celebration on the occasion of the 40th anniversary of the first Bulgarian-language radio broadcast on ethnic radio in Adelaide. Now the one hour long SBS Bulgarian program can be listened to all over Australia and I am glad that my episodes in the programmes "Did you know that ..." and "Lesser known Australia" are cheering many people. In December we will celebrate again - 45th anniversary!

 ***

Ever since Aunt Belche left this world, the boxes of candy full of balls and tassels, with Pijo and Penda, have stopped coming. My stock of martenitsas has been declining, and my colleagues from the Institute (an Institute with five Nobel laureates) are waiting for these white and red amulets and explain to the new graduate students and graduates the Bulgarian spring pagan tradition and its wonderful symbolism. When a young man asked: “Storks do not come here. When should I take off the martenitsa? ”, our boss replied: “When you see a pelican.”

***

I can't find white eggs. What do hens eat to lay beige eggs? And they do not become beautiful when you paint them, because the vividness of red, yellow and blue is lost. That day I started to open the egg boxes one by one and carefully choose the whitest ones. At one point, the store manager came and asked sternly if she could help me with anything. I explained to her that I wanted to paint eggs for Orthodox Easter, so I was searching for ones with white shells.

I told her how my mother took the first egg - red and warm, touched the cheeks of each member of the family and blessed them with the words "Red-red egg, red-red cheeks" (red cheeks are a symbol of health). This egg, smeared with olive oil, stands in front of the icon until next Easter. The woman joined the search and we managed to select 12 white eggs. On Easter, I brought colourful eggs to the store and showed what happened when they are tapped (all with the "sharp" side or with the "butt" up). There was big laughter! Next year I promised to show how to make a pattern with a parsley leaf put on an egg inside a pantyhoseand coloured in paint with vinegar.

Bulgarian Easter in the capital of Australia!

 

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