Love Is Never Past Tense...
Page 18
“Yes, guys,” shares Janna. “We urgently need to get to the hotel, and still have to register. Where all this is, we have no idea. And tomorrow, we have a meeting with the local press. We need to gather textures—in a word; we have business up to our necks.” Serge imagines, how tomorrow morning, lying in bed, they would gather full bags of texture—it would be good to know, what kind of rubbish this is …
In the meantime, the peacefully tuned guards of order have hospitably agreed to help, and asked them to follow their car. The jalopy with blinking lights, which was most likely a trophy from the time of World War II, gave them confidence, and the cortège quickly reached the place where the sacrament of registration was performed. The small window was covered by iron rods, coming out directly on the street. In it was an almost young woman with tousled dirty hair and a stupid—to a degree beyond sickness to your stomach—physiognomy.
It was the dead of night. The brain, already-asleep, seemed incapable to resolve the problem of two pieces of paper, on which the same last names were written in two different alphabets. “What the hell is this? These are our guests from America, don’t linger,” insistently recommended the oldest one. Serge wanted to add, that they have to gather a lot of texture … but knew he couldn’t possibly suppress the neighing of a young stallion.
Her sight passed from one passport to the other, then back to the first … The lady disappears somewhere in the depths of the passport sanctuary: her butt expressing complete bewilderment. At last she returns and demands money for her activities. Such money is simply not present, and there is no place to exchange the currency. Then the compassionate policeman pays her off himself. Janna says that the article would still go into the Washington Post. The policeman stands up even straighter and adjusts his uniform …
Again, with their honorable escort, the car moved along the sleeping city. “Here is the hotel.” A naked government building. The woman-manager simply melts from such visitors and wishes to thrust the newly made journalist and her companion into a Jacuzzi post haste. But the visitors eventually negotiated for a different empty room. Serge offered the policeman a few dollars. But that one refuses with pride. He salutes and disappears.
“Do you want to know what ‘texture’ is?” asks Serge.
“Na-uh, but what is it?”
“I think, it is the pattern of a tree when it’s cut down …”
Janna fell down on all fours, writhing in laughter.
***
The Dnestr smoothly moves its waters. It couldn’t care less what is happening on the banks. It didn’t care less one hundred, or two hundred years ago. It won’t care less for a thousand more. What is its business with two people who are standing on the balcony and finishing their morning coffee? In a few minutes these people will go downstairs, sit down in different cars, and go: one to the West, and one to the East. The desire to scream is unbearable: there is no more time for partings and travels in different directions? But circumstances are beyond their power. They cannot control them so far. Therefore the suitcases snapped shut, announcing that this wonderful summit, after so many years, is over.
The taxi driver patiently waits for farewell kisses to run dry. The lips do not want to leave each other. The lips want to live together. They do not want to live anymore in loneliness … when will they be next to one another again?
Serge with effort, extricates himself. He sits down in the car and presses on the gas. He drives away from the glorious and becoming dear Tiraspol. Ahead—a cloth of flat road. It is about 40 kilometers to the border. Almost nobody is on the road. And here, a hard lump catches in his throat. He lights a cigarette, but it does not help. Betraying tears flood his eyes. In 1974, in that ill-fated court, he should have just stretched out his hand and said: let’s get the hell out of this office … But he did not do it, and now bellows, threatening to go astray and roll into a ditch. It would be better to die. But not now, not now. “Unless your love for this woman has disappeared?” he asked himself. “But until it disappears—I need to live. In fact it will not disappear, so only death will interrupt it. But not now, not now…”
***
The coals burn down. Serge’s eyelids are closing. He sighs. It is a farewell sigh. He will not remember the past any more. And she won’t either. So they agreed.
A future is waiting for them, a joint future…
***
Author’s Note
Thank you for reading Love Is Never Past Tense…
If you enjoyed it, please let me know. You can …
Write me: janna@loveisneverpasttense.com
Like the Facebook Page https://www.facebook.com/loveisneverpasttense
Follow us on Twitter: @NeverPastTense
Check the web page: http://www.loveisneverpasttense.com/
See and like the Book Trailer: http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ejyPuOw28v0
If you enjoyed this book, I invite you to please write a customer review of the book at the retailer of your choice.
Yours,
Janna Yeshanova
April, 2012
Janna Yeshanova, M.A., M.Ed., founder and principal of Life-Spark LLC, is a dynamic and powerful life coach, premier trainer and motivational speaker. Janna leverages her passion and engaging style to help others to overcome adversity and spark the possibilities of their lives. Love Is Never Past Tense... was published first in Russia and Ukraine in 2009. It’s a fascinating adventurous romance novel, based on a true story.
1 Lobnoye Mesto—Place of Skulls, a famous site in Moscow, Russia at the Red Square where public executions were held during the reign of Ivan the Terrible.
2 Ilf and Petrov—well-known Russian writers.
3 Seriy means "grey" in Russian.
4 Russian has two forms of you: one (Vi) used in formal settings and one (ti) used with close friends and familymembers.
5 Kupati—an Eastern dish made of sausage and includes a variety of vegetables.
6 Serioga—term of endearment for the name Sergey.
7 Zhiguli—a Soviet-made Italian automobile.
8 Privoz—Odessa’s Central market.
9 Pioneer—the Soviet equivalent of "Boy Scout/Girl Scout", except being a pioneer was a duty for most of the Soviet youth from 10 to 14 years old.
10 Ochi Chernye [Russian]—Dark Eyes, a popular Russian folk-ballad.
11 Dzhenkuju [Polish]—thanks.
12 To bite your elbows—Russian phrase meaning that you will be so sorry you will do impossible things..
13 Dark blues—local reference to eggplants.
14 Reds—local reference to tomatoes.
15 Finnish—at that time, Finland was exporting a lot of clothing to the Soviet Union.
16 Jannochka—term of endearment for Janna’s name.
17 Seriozha—term of endearment for the name Sergey.
18 GDR—German Democratic Republic (East Germany).
19 The Potemkin Stairs—a giant stairway in Odessa, Ukraine and a famous symbol of Odessa. The stairs are considered a formal entrance into the city from the direction of the sea.
20 Nuzhnik [Russian slang]—in this case the word means the one who is needed. The word had a double meaning: in the past it meant an outside toilet. The youth converted the word to mean needed, but like a toilet. A toilet is needed, but it is not the most pleasant analogy. It is a more derogatory term.
21 Ivanushka-Durachok—Ivan the Fool, who married a princess. He is one of the best-loved heroes of Russian fairytales.
22 Spring road—in Russia, winters are long and the snow and ice last long into the spring.
23 Cutlets—ground meat, fried with garlic, onions and spices.
24 Ogoniok [Russian]—“Spark” magazine.
25 Habitation—In the Soviet Republic of Moldova, the climate was warm with lots of sunshine, so it was crowded. After WW II, housing was scarce.
26 Yennika—Czech equipment.
27 Banya—a communal-style or private rooms bathing house with hot steam.
29 Hussars—members of a European light cavalry unit.
30 Dacha—summer house.
31 Registry Office—The Department of Registration of Civil Statuses, where applications to marry are submitted. Once the application is filed the couple can get married in one to three months.
32 Tolyatti—city in Italy—naming the Italian & Russian produced cars.
33 Gorko [Russian]—bitter. It’s a Russian tradition to chant this word at weddings to encourage kissing. It means that life is bitter, and the newlyweds must kiss to make it sweet.
34 Moscow registration—A person must be registered to live and work in cities like Moscow. He/she can only receive the registration for certain valid circumstances like marriage.
35 “To go to the people”—This is a phrase from Gorky. It means “go and make your own life.”
36 Komsomol—Young Communist League. The organization served as a highly mobile pool of labor and political activism.
37 Allochka—term of endearment for the name Alla.
38 Above and below—refers to the government and the people.
39 FSB —Russian Federal Security Service (former KGB).
40 Martin Eden—main hero in Jack London’s novel of the same name. He commits suicide by drowning.
41 Janka—term of familiarity, like Mikey for Mike.
42 Tiraspol—the second largest city in Moldova. It is the capital and administrative centre of the de facto independent Pridnestrovian Moldavian Republic.
43 Collective farms—Every autumn, the students had to go to the collective farms to help with the harvest.
44 Refusal—when the Soviet authorities denied permission to emigrate abroad. These people became dissidents.
45 During the Soviet period, several generations stayed in the same quarters, waiting for 20+ years to receive permission to get separate housing.
46 I’m married—During this time Soviet passports were stamped if a person was married. Janna pretended this was an advance from the soldier to avoid surrendering her passport.
47 Valerian—a widely used herb in Europe as sedative, migraine treatment or pain reliever.
48 Corvalol—routinely prescribed in Russia as a sedative and/or vasodilator (blood vessel dilator). It is frequently prescribed for cardiac conditions as well.
49 Pravda—the leading Soviet newspaper at that time.
50 Basta, immigrazione russa è finite! [Italian]—Enough! Russian immigration is over!
51 Grivnas—Ukranian currency.
52 The Young Naturalists—a club of children in Russia that was interested in nature.
53 Soldo—old gold coin from ancient Italy.
Table of Contents
Title Page
Part One: How It All Began
Part Two: Overboard
Part Three: Exodus
Part Four: Return to the Future
Footnotes