Charity on the 1st day of winter (December 2018)

Winter has arrived, and outside it is cold, wet and windy! It is December (December 22, 2018) and the entire world is preparing for Christmas, but unfortunately there are still many people without a warm shelter, seriously incapacitated and in a dire need of some basic, simple necessities.

With a few modest donations collected from several friends as well as my financial contribution, today I’ve managed to organize a small group of dear friends so together we could prepare a number of bags filled with some basic winter necessities (such as winter toques, gloves, wool socks & scarfs) for the homeless people on East Hastings Street. Regrettably, we couldn’t comfort them all, but at least we were able to offer a shy help to a handful.

Why am I sharing this gesture with you? Definitively not to show off, but rather to demonstrate (to ourselves & to whoever is willing to listen) that IT IS possible to make a good difference in the world without being filthy rich. 

On the other hand, by this note, I’m also extending my sincere appreciation to my husband and to my dear friends who, at this busy time of the year (right before Christmas, when everybody is super busy with cooking, cleaning, shopping, etc.), found few hours so we could work together on this charity project.

In closing, the message to pass along it is more of an encouragement, as any time you can, wherever you can, be good & do good, because kindness it is always free!

Be the change you wish to see in the world.

December 21, 2018: Joyful WINTER, dear friends!

Blessed it is the season which engages the entire world in a conspiracy of love.

 “In the midst of winter, I found within me an invincible summer.” (Albert Camus)

Winter solstice: a short scientific briefing 

From an astronomic perspective, on December 21^st, 2018, it is the winter solstice (also called the ‘hibernal solstice’), which marks the shortest day and the longest night of the year for all the people who are living in the Northern Hemisphere. 

According to the definition of the seasons, the winter solstice also marks the beginning of winter season, which lasts until the vernal equinox (March 20 or 21 in the Northern Hemisphere, or September 22 or 23 in the Southern Hemisphere). 

After the shortest day of the year slowly turns toward a greater length, this will embrace again the return of the sunnier days and the coming of spring.

WINTER (by Antonio Vivaldi) – audio

December 2018: Celebrating the Romanian Centenary

~ An evening of poetry, history & Christmas cheer, featuring Romania's National Day ~

Before too long, I am glad to share that on Friday (December 14’18) I was truly happy to be able to meet with a fairly large group of dear friends in order to celebrate the Romanian Centenary as this special year would end up soon. Our gathering this time was a bit different than usual, but without any doubt, enjoyable in every way.

The evening together unfolded with a cheerful & well garnished potluck & after that we all settled around, in a large circle so we could start with our cultural section. 

We began our program with the Romanian Anthem (since we were honoring the Romanian Centenary), followed suit by the Canadian Anthem….needless to say that our hearts open widely, as the musical notes filled the room with such a profound sense of unity and heart touching national pride, in the most genuine sense.

The evening continued with a number of interesting presentations, when my friends evoked important pages of Romanian history; they brought along old photo albums with dear ancestors who created those pages of history, they shared original compositions (poems, songs & essays) especially created for the occasion, a large genealogical tree and many heart warming life stories that were shared in such a genuine manner….some of them I will elaborate below.
For instance, we were pleased to have with us that evening our friend Doina, whose ancestor is the Greek-Catholic Bishop Iuliu Hossu.   

Portrait: The Greek-Catholic Bishop, Iuliu Hossu
Iuliu Hossu was a Greek-Catholic priest, Bishop of the Cluj-Gherla Diocese (1885-1970) and a very well-known historic figure (biography), who in the year 1918, read to a 100,000 Romanians the ‘Alba Iulia Proclamation’ which officially states the unification of Transylvania, Bessarabia and Bukovina with the Romanian Kingdom, during the reign of Ferdinand I. 
In the comments section I am publishing few historic articles & video links (both in Romanian & English languages) with background info, featuring Bishop Hossu.

Portrait: Ligia Oancea

Also, on Friday, our friend Ligia Oancea, a talented music conductor and song writer (biography), brought along a personal composition – the poem called “Mi-e dor”, which (with Ligia’s permission) I am happy to be able to publish in the comments section.
Aside of that, we were delighted to hear from Ligia about her roots (Ligia is a descendent of Stârcea family), as she brought along her genealogical tree covering the last 600 hundred years. With Ligia’s permission for this website only, I’ve put together a concise collage, which reflects her sharing. 

Further, our friend Dana offered a brief expose referring to Emmanuel de Martonne and Robert Ficheux – two French geographers who allocated many years of research accurately mapping the Central Europe, as well as Romania.

Besides, Dana presented a centenary medal produced by a group of Romanians from diaspora; this distinction is accompanied by a special parchment listing a chart of a 100 famous Romanian historical figures.   

Our evening together continued with a lovely presentation offered by our dear friend Dorina Aldea, who wrote an article about the Romanian Centenary & a beautiful, heart-felt essay  (the original versions are written in Romanian Language and Dorina sent them along so I could publish both in the  comments section).

Another meaningful input was brought along by our friend Dean P., who further elaborated on the contribution of the Romanian Bishop Hossu to the Romanian history, describing it all in an educational manner.
Then our friend Ioana shared few personal memories adjoining Christmas family traditions.
And last, but not least, our dear friend Teo Trandafir delighted us with a personal poem as well as few remarks concerning the Romanian history and the Romanian Christmas traditions.

After all presentations were delivered, we raised our voices, singing together the famous Romanian song, called “Treceţi batalioane Române Carpaţii” (“Romanian Troops, Cross The Carpathian Mountains”) that made all our hearts beat faster, filling them with gratitude and appreciation for the many sacrifices our ancestors made so the Romanians would live nowadays in a peaceful, united and rejoiced country.

The toast that followed was unanimous: “TRÃIASCÃ ROMÂNIA MARE!” ("Longlive the Greater Romania") – we raised our voices & our glasses with (non-alcoholic) champagne to honor this beautiful moment of togetherness, and national pride.

Additionally, our group happiness was followed by a bouquet of very well-known Christmas carols, and with glowing hearts, we did sing them together, each rewinding in our minds precious childhood moments.

The time we spent together was relaxing and impressive in every way, without realizing that in fact we were creating lasting memories!
Now, when I write these line to you, I am deeply touched recognizing that certain heartwarming moments would be simply unforgettable, and I would like to thank each of my friends for their companionship.

On the other hand, I would like to briefly mention that at this time of the year, when Christmas is literally around the corner, all my guests were having busy agendas (mine not being an exception either), but despite the heaviness of their schedules, my dear friends walked the extra mile to spare few hours squeezing into their calendars our gathering – needless to say that my appreciation for all and each of them goes way beyond any words!
So, once again my dear friends, a big & heartfelt THANK YOU to each of you, & until we meet again, I'm wishing you all, happy, blessed and peaceful holidays!

Alice 

“A nation’s culture resides in the hearts of its people.”

     ● A page of old history: Portrait Bishop Iuliu Hossu

      ● A page of current history: Portrait Ligia Oancea

Snapshots from our time together (Friday - December 14, 2018)

This event has been delivered in Romanian Language, featuring Romanian culture. 

● An additional greeting I've created referring to Romania's National Day: Happy 100th anniversary, Romania! 

● ARTICLE featuring our event on December 14, 2018, published by OBSERVATORUL (from Toronto)

2018: Happy 100 anniversary, Romania!

A page of history: December 1 – Romania’s Great Unification Day

On December 1st, 2018, Romania celebrates its National Day as well as the passing of a 100 years since the 1918 Great Union (a major historic event that changed the country's course forever), which is also a source of great national pride.

This is one of the most important Romanian national holidays, and it is called the “Great Union Day” or the “Unification Day” (Romanian: "Ziua Marii Uniri") and in many parts of the world it is known as “National Romania Day”. 

This special holiday marks the unification of Transylvania, Bessarabia and Bukovina with the Romanian Kingdom in 1918. According to ‘Alba Iulia Proclamation’, all these Romanian regions joined Romania as a country, and here I will list only few significant political and academic contributors who made this historic event possible: Ion I.C. Bratianu, Vasile Goldis, Iuliu Maniu, Alexandru Vaida-Voevod, Ioan Suciu, Octavian Goga, Iuliu Hossu, Gheorghe Pop de Basesti. The proclamation was read to 100,000 Romanians by Iuliu Hossu, who was a Greek-Catholic priest, Bishop of the Cluj-Gherla Diocese. 

The Union marked the country’s history forever, but after that Romania had to pass through many other changes and challenges and some of them included the World War II, the Communist regime and the 1989 Revolution. 
Despite numerous hardships, it is also appropriate to mention that Romania still looks ahead with sound optimism, but it does not forget its past.

Every year, on December 1^st, throughout the entire country are taking place various festive events commemorating the national heroes and in Bucharest (the capital city), under the Arch of Triumph, it is held an annual military parade of the Romanian Armed Forces; after the parade, people gather with their families and friends to celebrate together. Also, it is customary to wear the colors of the Romanian flag (red, yellow & blue), which represent the different provinces of the country. 

In closing of this brief expose, I would like to refresh what Nicolae Iorga (a famous Romanian historian) said once upon a time: "People who don't know their history are like kids who don't know their parents", so please be mindful of that & remember: "The more you know about the past, the better prepared you are for the future."

Greetings for a happy Saint Andrew’s Day!

               Happy Name Day to all who celebrate St. Andrew!

November 30: SAINT ANDREW – the First Called…

Celebrating someone’s Name Day it is an old European tradition; for centuries, all across the continent people have been celebrating their first names pretty much in the same way as we celebrate birthdays on this part of the world (over there, usually birthdays are celebrated mostly with the immediate family, but the name days are widely known and celebrated in larger circles). 

Generally speaking, each first name is assigned to one day of the calendar, based on different spiritual traditions, or specific historical events, or in relation with other facts.

Just imagine how pleasant it is to meet every year with dear friends for a joyful time, when nobody wonders how old you are?! In effect, it is like having a second birthday.

May the day find you close to those you love!