May the force be with them!

Last week James had to write a report on a country of his own heritage, completed with maps, make-your-own flag, and a picture of a little boy in a traditional costume.  James, of course, chose Albania.  We had so much fun working together in this that I now have a renewed desire to teach my kids Albanian and take them back to my native country in the near future.  Nostalgia is a dangerous thing, but it also can serve as a reminder of beautiful memories.

In his report, James was asked to share one specific tradition that defines that country.  It was hard to choose from the many great things I love about my heritage, but I finally pinpointed one that meant a lot to me as Melita.  Here is James's report:

Albania is a small country found in Europe, north of Greece and across the Adriatic with Italy.

Albania is an ancient name of the country which is called “Shqiperia” by its people.  It means the land of eagles. 

Albanians are known for their hospitality, generosity and service-oriented acts of kindness.  Albania has a deep tradition of honoring guests that continues on to this day.  Their homes are always open for friends and visitors.

Here is an interesting story that demonstrates this strong characteristic:

 Once upon a time, an Albanian had done a lot of damages to the city and country.  Finally he was caught and brought to justice.  The leader wanted to make an example of him, so he organized a celebration where the criminal was to be executed.  When the executor was about to chop off his head, the leader, called Pasha decided to humiliate the Albanian in front of his guests. "Tell me," said he, "have you ever been in a position like this before."

"Yes. Twice," answered the Albanian, in surprise to everyone.

"When," asked the Pasha.

"Twice I have had guests in my house, and I didn't have any food for them. They went to bed hungry", answered the Albanian, tears rolling from his eyes. The Pasha was so touched by this, that he spared the Albanian's life. 

Albanian language is called Albanian or shqip.  The traditional music is highly influenced by the Greeks in the south and the Turks, who had invaded Albania for 500 years.  The same can be said about Albanian food.  Located on the Adriatic sea, fish is a staple in the Albanian cuisine.  Albanians take pride in the cooking of their meals.  Everything has to be fresh so moms go buying food every day. 

The most popular sport in Albania is soccer.  Kids play it as soon as they start walking. 

Albanian clothing includes more than 200 different kinds of varieties.  Qeleshe is a common headdress for men and Xhaqete is a traditional vest worn across the country.

The flag has one black eagle with two heads on a red background.  The red background represents the blood shed to protect the country and the double headed eagle stands as a reminder that although long time ago there were two different kinds of people living in Albania they still lived in harmony with each other.

Last Friday, Gillian's 5th grade class presented their musical "The Pirates of Grammar Island" to their whole school.  All their parents were invited as well.  Elijah took a couple of hours off, and mom, Charlton, and I all attended my beautiful daughter's show.  I loved the idea of learning about grammar and its usage through songs and acting.  Gillian had many parts that were general and specific, but the one major role she loved was the Queen of the Pronouns.  I was able to record some of her singing, but my camera went dead all of a sudden, so it's not complete.  Nevertheless, enjoy it, because we truly did.

 Saturday was an unusually busy day. We try to keep our Saturdays relaxed and concentrated on our family.  Sometimes, days like this come along and you do your best.  Elijah didn't get his only day sleep-in time.  He woke up early in the morning to accompany Jefferson to his Cub Scout activity.  Their pack had planned an activity at a nearby airport.  They were going to learn the ins and outs of the plane and then fly with their instructor in a small plane over the Bay Area.  Needless to say, Jefferson had a grand time, and his dreams of becoming a jet pilot were reawaken.

This is the plane Jefferson flew in.  He wants his own now.

Here is Jefferson truly feeling at home.

Elijah's passion is motorcycles; this one has wings, a great combination for Jefferson, who wants to be like dad, but also keep his own identity.

While Jefferson was reveling in the magic of flying, Gillian was preparing for a cross-country race.  She had been chosen to represent her school in the Annual Millennial Mile, having had the best time of all  the 5th grade girls.  When her turn came to run, she got so nervous especially after seeing that in her heat there were several tall African American girls with bodies made for runners.  I told her to never quit and just keep going, that being there amongst the best runners was an honor.  She didn't buy my encouragement speech and was still a bit scared as she started on her run.  In the end, she wasn't among the first ones, but she wasn't last either and she never gave up.  That's all I wanted her to learn today.  I know which battles to fight for, and this wasn't it, at least not yet.

Tired and discouraged yes, but not a quitter

As soon as the cross-country race was over, we headed home.  Gillian took a shower, and she and James got ready for their Spring Choral Concert.  I accompanied them there taking them a bit early for their rehearsal, and Elijah and the rest of the family joined us later.  The concert was phenomenal.  The choir director is a well renown musician and a perfectionist.  And it showed from the music selections, the professionalism of the singers of all ages, to the flawless performance of everyone involved.  The music pieces varied from the baroque era to modern choral songs, from Germany, England, to Africa.  My favorite pieces from James's group repertoire was The Sound of Music piece, My favorite Things, and I Won't Grow Up from the musical Peter Pan.  It's hard to choose from Gillian's group music pieces that I like the best, because they were all just amazing.  But if I had to choose the Appalachian folksong Bowling Green and Bist du bei mir by Bach were my favorite.  From the Advanced Chorus, I loved Verdi's Witches' Chorus from Macbeth and Gershwin's Clap Yo' Hands.  What a privilege for my kids to be part of this musical experience and for us to enjoy the fruits of their labor!

On Sunday evening, while Elijah attended his Stake Priesthood meeting (a new patriarch was called), I took the rest of the family to another concert at the Interstake Center by the Oakland Temple.  The first part of the concert included a few piano concertos from Tchaikovsky, and the guest pianist, Dr. Scott Holden, the director of Keyboard Studies at BYU, was exceptional.  He knew how to portray the tenderness of Tchaikovsky's work in ways I hadn't heard before.  The children were mesmerized by his playing, and I kept telling them since they already possess musical talents, they just needed to put practice hours to become like that pianist.  Gillian gets scared when I introduce these kinds of expectations, but Jefferson took it in stride.

The second half of the concert included Gustav Holst 's The Planets, which I had never heard, but was pleasantly surprised, as well as John Williams' Star Wars Medley.  This last one was especially well attended by my kids since it also offered dance choreography portraying parts of the movie.  In the end, the children were invited to take pictures with various Star Wars characters, which of course was greeted with loud applause by kids of various ages.  It was a beautiful evening for everyone involved.

And now my friends, may the force be with you till our next adventures.