October 2008
Wandering through the sun-drenched remains of ancient civilizations,
So marked by beauty and exuberant intelligence
which was not yet enough to ensure survival,
I wonder…what of our survival?
Have we learned enough?
If we outstrip our resources, or our wisdom, as did other civilizations,
Will another Dark Ages loom,
of terror and superstition and bare survival?
Is this just our few centuries in the sun,
In the continuing cycle of civilizations thrown up
like vast ant hills that quickly rise and decline,
built by industrious and restless ants?
For what purpose is this restless drive to create?
And in the short few millennia of human history,
…only an eyeblink in evolutionary terms…
have we learned how to harness it
to prevent the decline to darkness?
I wonder…
Perhaps the restlessness is all to ensure a safe world
in which our children can thrive.
So that even as we slaughter our enemies, the goal
is safety for those we love.
Perhaps the drive is ultimately our heart’s deepest yearning –
To experience the fearless connection,
The oneness we knew in the womb.
To face and conquer all threats to that trustful connection to life.
So often we have used aggression and violence to create that security,
Have we learned enough
…to understand of our enemies
that they also seek safety for their children,
in their way?
…to see our interdependence with all the planet and
the imperative to love and protect the whole of it?
…to see that security in the long term lies in understanding
and not in dominance?
All core religious teachings call us to peace
And to the brother- and sisterhood of all.
Can we bring that dormant hope
Into tangible existence,
So that we can face the challenge of shrinking global resources,
And ever more powerful technologies of destruction,
With grace rather than violence?
Perhaps the spirits of all those who struggled over ten thousand years
to build worlds of beauty and harmony, as best they knew,
hoping to bring light to darkness, are waiting with us now,
to see…
Sofia, Bulgaria
Through the mist
a mountain sings
with dancing feet,
guida, accordion, rolling hips,
circus tricks. Step to the beat,
ring out the sunny fog,
taste the honey of the evening.
Dancers quicken, join
the circle of grace, twist, turn
with agile limbs, embroider the field,
a living serpentine.
Spirits clap, tuned to the lyre
of the mountain spring
as they glide, hands linked
under wings of watchful stars.
Mary K. Lindberg
*Forthcoming publication in Waterways,Volume 30, No. 3 (2009).
Poem's subject based on Jim Gold's 2007 folk dance trip to Bulgaria.
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Raindrops on roses and whiskers on kittens, bright copper kettles, and… warm cheese banitsa were just a few of my favorite things as I traveled through little-known Bulgaria in August 2007 with Jim Gold International Folk Tours. Our group, which included (but was not limited to!) folk dancers, musicians, and singers, danced through the country--on mountain tops, in hotel lobbies, taverns, and folk festivals between visits to historic sites.
Jim’s “Mad Shoe Tour” to the ancient, beautiful, and mysterious Bulgaria, often referred to by investors as the “undiscovered gem of Europe,” included overnight stays in Sofia, Bansko, Pamporovo, Plovdiv, Veliko Turnovo, and Koprivshtitsa—all centuries-old cities few Americans have heard of. The itinerary included singing workshops and dancing; scenic drives through four mountain ranges; and stops at spas, Thracian tombs, and monasteries. But the chief draw for most would be Bulgaria ’s folklore—dancing, singing, and eating with the festively-clad locals. Folklore, after all, was the heart and soul of Bulgaria . I had known about Jim’s folk tours since 1994, after attending writing workshops with him and reading his series of books on his travels, all entitled A New Leaf. “Folklore is alive and hidden in little-known countries such as Bulgaria , Slovakia , Bohemia , and Romania ,” he had written, “or along the less traveled paths of known countries like Greece , Turkey , Israel , and Italy .” Someday I’d go with him, I always promised myself.
Jim told me Bulgaria was one of his favorite destinations—this would be his ninth trip there. “It’s gorgeous, historic, has rich folklore, and wonderful people. It’s also the best bargain in Europe .”
Magical. Mysterious. Undiscovered and inexpensive.
I did some research on the Internet. “Undiscovered” Bulgaria is roughly the size of Ohio , shares borders with Romania , Turkey , and Greece , has four seasons, and has everything (mountains, prairies, seashore) but deserts. It also became part of the European Union in January 2007.
European tourist bureaus consider it “the next Croatia ” due to Europeans who flock there in the summer to soak in the sun along the two-hundred miles of Black Sea beaches, and return in the winter to ski at one of Bulgaria ’s numerous ski resorts. The two most famous ones, Bansko and Pamporovo, were both on Jim’s itinerary. With four mountain ranges, Bulgaria , I read, had been a contender for the 2014 winter Olympics.
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