Easter is so Awesome!

Ok, so I'm rather neutral on the Christ part and all the beliefs behind this holiday, but looking at it from a purely ritualistic or traditional standpoint, it is really powerful.

So of course Lent is observed normally by not eating red meat or drinking hard alcohol (alcoholics exempt). Then there is Cave Friday, when the boulder was rolled in front of the entrance to Jesus's resting place. On all big religious holidays work is prohibited, even washing clothes and getting water.

Then Saturday was spent out on the fields turning over the soil by hand because our (my Ukrainian grandma and I) piece of land is two small to rent a horse drawn plow. Got my first sunburn of the year and actually wore through my Millionair gloves on the rough natural branch handel of my shovel. I got my soil turning technique down pat left and right handed and learned how to ensure that the chicken poop gets mixed with the soil and not only stuck to my shoes.

We also re-planted the peppers from the windowsill to outside under clear plastic supported by bent willow branches. Need to be covered bacause it's still down around freezing at sunrise (which is now at 630am). Then we took our basket of Paska Cakes (hot cross buns) hard boiled decorated eggs (different leaf shapes left white while the egg was dyed in onion skin water) meat, salt, butter and other stuff to church, had it blessed with holy water. Ok, the saturday evening blessing is the most beautiful religious ceremony I have seen. Everyone comes in their best clothes and stands in rings around the church with elaborate baskets full of amazing food. The Preacher comes with his holy water followed by a procession of medieval flag bearers (and a money collector). The sun is setting, everone is crossing themselves, candles are flickering in the breeze, and I forgot my camera again and forgot about the video function on my phone, actually forgot about everything except the pure beauty of the moment. There was some singing in the background, little children running all over the place and a sense of hope.

I slept too well Saturday night, and actually slept through church (started at 5am, so don't give me a hard time). When Maria came back from church, I went for a run and then broke Lent by eating meat and drinking wine. The whole day is spent eating and drinking. I went over to two other houses, and out to the forest. Beautiful clear sunny days, not hot, not cold, every minute of cold winter seems worth it to have this contrast.

Then of course Easter is 3 days long. 3 full days of not being allowed to work. What a tough life. Ok, forgot

previously

so the money was being collected to pay for those sheets which should have been returned to C). I felt that if they were my sheets now, I would pay the money and then maybe sell them used.

I went to the director with the money in my hand and was forced away as she became offended that i had offered my money. She said that the teachers I work with deserve a lower salary, and to make this difference they will by me sheets. I said that is wrong, and I will buy my own sheets.

The next day she (director) collected the money and now relations are definitely strained between me and her. I considered giving the money back to each teacher, figuring out what share they had paid. But instead I just gave the sheets to the owner of C) and will do something nice for the teachers later this year, coffee cookies type thing. Maybe bake them banana bread.

The director did by these sheets in the beginning, but if anyone has enough money to buy sheets for me its the director and not the teachers I work with. Well, i'm not even angry about this anymore, so I really have no motivation to write more about it.

Drama from the Top

And all over bedsheets.

My living spaces in Ukraine:
A) Host Family, bedroom, 3 months
B) Host Family, bedroom, 1 month
C) Apartment, 3 rooms, 6 months
D) Apartment, 1 room, 6 months
E) Host Grandma, bedroom, 2 months and counting

When I moved into C), I just used the old sheets that were there, not really thinking about it.

Two weeks after I moved into D), a woman knocked on the door and delivered new sheets, saying something I didn't completely understand. Not imagining what they could be for other than using, I promptly started sleeping on them.
Two weeks later, I hear that the brand new sheets were supposed to go back to the owner of C) in a trade for the sheets I already used, but now that I had used them, everything was ruined. Owner f C) just let it go and said don't worry about it.

Lets remember how the cost of my apartment which Peace Corps cannot afford is supposed to be covered by my community. It's called a community contribution and helps add value to my position because I'm not just "free". School director decided that this community contribution should collected from only the teachers with whom I work (perfectly fair in her mind, because they have less work, they get less money (how is working with me easier?)).

Room E) is cheaper and no longer requires a community contribution. Thus last week I was surprised to be asked to verify my hours with every teacher. I knew that this sort of check was in order to collect money, but why...
to be continued
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