Ivana Kupala 2011
By my seventh Kupala I had stopped finding it exotic and started finding it sensible, which is what happens when you live somewhere long enough.
A good Kupala night.
Somewhere around this year the day stopped being interesting to me as a foreigner and became simply part of the calendar. That transition is worth naming, because it is what living in a country does to you.
The first time, you notice everything and understand nothing. Then for a few years you are the person asking what things mean. And then one summer you find you are the one explaining the fern flower to a newer arrival, with the same straight face and the same laugh at the end, and you realise you have crossed over.
Fire, water, the shortest night. Enjoy it, and be sensible about the jumping.
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