Springtime

First of all, did anyone else get the urge to sing “Springtime for Hitler and Germany” when they read this title? If you didn’t, I hope you are singing it now.

So on the topic of springtime, I think spring has finally showed up. Moldova celebrates the first day of spring on March 1, and I was hopeful for the season to begin. But then it snowed several more times since then. There’s a saying here that when it snows after March 15, it’s the lady in the sky, Baba Odokia, shaking out her winter coats.

The most annoying thing about spring coming is the transition into spring. Everything is melting, and mud is everywhere. And since I have to walk everywhere, I notice the mud much more than I would have in America. Many roads are unpaved, so clearly they are just mud. And there is so much mud and melting snow that those paths that are paved are flooded with mud still.

SIDENOTE: I feel like I’m using the word “mud” a lot. I don’t like using the same word over and over again when I’m writing, but the overuse of the word “mud” can be seen as a metaphor for how much mud there has been.

Anyways, the ground was so muddy that on several occasions, my foot started to slip out of my shoe because it was stuck in the mud. It’s no wonder there was so much mud after a winter with so much snow. But I think the mud is finally mostly dried up. With winter providing a frozen ground and spring provides the muddy death trap, I’m curious to see what new obstacle Moldova will provide next in my daily commute.

The past several days have been beautiful. The sun was shining and the temperature was cool. From my window, outside looks so sunny and bright and beautiful that I want to do my work outside. But it’s still a bit too chilly for that; after sitting still for more than 15 minutes, I am too cold. But it means that warmer weather is on the way, and I’m looking forward to it.

Marțișor

Marțișor: the first day of spring. Today is a celebration of the rebirth of life after the hard winter. And Moldovans celebrate by giving loved ones marțișors. “Marțișor” literally means ‘little March’, and they are symbols of serenity and happiness. They are small pins with red and white thread sewn together. Some have flowers, others have something crocheted out of the red/white thread. Here is a picture of some of the marțișors I received.

The receiver of a marțișor wears it until the end of March. When March is over, the receiver puts his/her marțișors onto a blossoming tree as a way to acknowledge the onset of spring. Someone who gave me a marțișor also told me that putting the marțișor on a tree would guarantee me many healthy children in the future.

There is a legend behind marțișor. An old Romanian legend says that once in a fight with Winter Witch who didn’t want to give up its place, the beautiful Lady Spring cut her finger and a few drops of her blood fell on the snow. There, the snow melted and a snowdrop flower grew. In such a way, the spring won the winter.