I Hugged a Tree

One morning in March, last week to be precise, the weather was not quite perfect: sunny on the outside but frosty and snowy allover. And that is when it happened, on my way to work: crash boom bang and I hit a tree by the side of the highway.

I've been told it's a miracle to even be here and tell you this awful story. I was lucky: I had a new car that protected me with air bag and other security systems and I was wearing my seat belt. I have scraps and nasty bruises and injured knees and you can see marks of where the airbag hit my face and where the seat belt kept me from being thrown off the window. But I am alive and kicking.

I'm sorry I gave my Mum such an awful Mother's Day. I am thankful for everything she's done for the and for wanting to get on the first flight here. I hope she will stop smoking, as she promised. My guy was worried sick. Now we make fun of my amnesia but at the time, I don't think it was funny for him, having to tell me every 5 minutes what had happened.

I've had calls from a lot of people, friends, colleagues, former colleagues. My friends helped inform my parents. I'm overwhelmed by this outburst of love from people far away, when I was the one supposed to call people on that day. So I say thank you for your care and I'm sorry I caused all this trouble around myself.

Martisor

I wish you all a warm and sunny spring. I know in France it's still Winter (and considering the latest storm, a very bleak one), Romanians are celebrating the start of Spring, the warming of the air and already looking forward to barbecues (my Dad has already grilled the first steaks outdoors).

Eastern European girls are all wearing a red and white bracelet around their wrists. And so are some of the boys. Usually it's boys who offer the little charm, but sometimes, the girl puts it around her boy's wrist (that's what I did) as a symbol of the end of Winter, the triumph of good over bad (and other lame things).

This image is one that all Romanians will recognize: you see it everywhere around this time, these two little lovebirds have become Spring itself.

The black and red strings are most often accompanied by a flower that boys and men offer their mothers, sisters, daughters, lovers... This is my favorite is a freesia that I would like to offer, symbolically, to whomever reads these pages.

Have a nice spring! Krasne Jaro! O primavara frumoasa