Belfry
After the liturgy, some other people and I went higher to the belfry. We wanted to see the big bell, which sounds a few times a day to remind everybody about our Heavenly Father and the duty we are called to fulfil on Earth. (I couldn't choose the photo, so I posted here 2 photos of Belfry: first was made by myself - you may see my friends with whom I was on the Mountain; the second I took from the site of Vissarion.)
There is a big bell in the middle of the belfry and some smaller ones around it. I'm overwhelmed with feelings, I mount the stairs to the belfry, touch with my hand the new, just planed boards - a new sacred place.
| I look around, the view from there takes my breath away. It seems that half of the world lays on your palm. Tears in my eyes out of the fullness of my heart . I brush away tears and grab my camera. But, alas! If I had a digital camera, if I could choose the perspective, if... |
|
|
|---|
Down. The road home
We go down. On the road, we again pass the Valley of ferns — the place of meetings with Vissarion.
| Then we descend to the Heavenly Abode. These are vegetable gardens of the Heavenly Abode, in the distance you may see the house of a door-keeper. The day was warm, we were thirsty. We came there to drink some water. |
|
|
|---|
We came into our tent camp for a farewell dinner. Fuss, preparations, partings. Some go down, some stay here. A thought flashes in my mind: maybe, to forget about my work, about the train ticket back to Moscow and to stay here? We are tied so strongly to civilization and the habit, which we call "duty", holds us so firmly! However, I’ve made my choice already — I go back to Moscow. For the present. But now I know that I’ll never forget that Land, where I was happy. And I know, I will come back to you, Siberia — the Promised Land!
We’re going down. When I thought that the descent would be easier than the ascent, it seems, I was wrong. First of all, because there were rains, and we must go in waders which are heavier than running shoes. And the main trouble is that the road turned into a miry jumble. We have to walk around puddles and to choose the path. And lower — oh, my God! — continuous bog. Only tussocks somewhere. We have to jump from one tussock to another, but they are soft and sink beneath our feet. I was very tired and walked slowly, my friends went farther. A couple times my legs fell into the bog, I was alone on the path, I sank and thought that I could lose my rubber shoes. It was very difficult to pull out my feet from this fen, I could do it only with the name of God and my firm belief that I CAN do it. Of course, again I carry a rucksack and a bag, but in my bag now not food, but herbs which I gathered on the Mountain, holy water and other small items. Again brothers helped me. One of them took my bag at the beginning of our descent. Then when at last I got from the bog onto the firm road, I was ready to drop and it seemed my rucksack weighed a ton, one of brothers who went from the tent camp later, came up to me. Other people went forward and I faintly moved my feet and walked like a sleep-walker. He said: "Sister, let me help you!". I tried to joke: "Well, if you just take me in your hands?!" — "Give me your rucksack, I’ll carry it!" I saw that his rucksack was heavy, I tried to refuse. But I had no strength even to talk. I resignedly gave him my rucksack. "Oh, your rucksack is light!" — he said and hung up my rucksack on his chest, his one was on his back. And he walked forward so easily and quickly as he walked without any luggage.
| Finally I got to the lorry, other people were there already. We climbed into the lorry, plunged our things into it and drove on. Again we stopped in every village, but now we said "good-bye" to people who lived there, they jumped out of the lorry. And across the sky an amazing rainbow stood above the mountain, though there wasn’t any rain. Like heaven itself sent us its farewell greeting. I was engrossed in thoughts, forgot about the camera and was late to take a picture of THAT rainbow. But there is another picture which was taken by Oleg Buharov. |
previous<<----- page 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 7, 8, ----->> next
Back Tatiana's Day About me
Татьянин День Путешествие в Сибирь Обо мне
