A Novel Creation www.WatersWords.com

  I have never been much of a girly girl. I’ve not been one to wear makeup or worry about my hair. I don’t paint my nails or spend money on jewelry. Don’t misunderstand. Like most women, I like to feel good about myself and when Tom was around, I basked in his appreciative nods my way. It’s just that I’m not a beauty salon addict. Never have been. I used to think my take on beauty stemmed from my mother always saying, “Pretty is as pretty does” and the fact that I was teen during the whole natural look of the seventies movement. The bottom line? I wasn’t out to impress anyone and as long as my husband liked the way I looked, I was fine. Now I live in Kosovo where women looked like they stepped out of a 1960’s Vogue magazine ad. (Okay, I never actually read Vogue, but I know it is a fashion journal that’s been around forever.) Back to Kosovar women. They are beautiful. They wear makeup and have their nails done. They spend time getting coiffed and groomed and dressing nic...

I’ve written much on my blog about the nationals here in Kosovo. Most of my local contacts daily are with Albanian Kosovars, though I have met a few Serbians and a couple of Roma people. I have shared how gracious and good these people are to me. From the bus drivers and people at my local market, to the teachers at my school and the leaders of my church, the Kosovars are precious to me. So today I decided to share with you some insight on another group of people I love and adore: the internationals. Although by definition I suppose most would call this group, expats (ex, a prefix meaning “out of” and patria, meaning “home country”) I hear my Kosovar friends refer to us as internationals. My friend Jill is ALWAYS busy... But never too busy to help a anyone in need. We are a community. I work with several Americans, a Scotsman, and a German. I go to church with a lovely group of Brits, Americans, and Dutch. We are all here for different reasons. And all for the same purpose...

It started with a book. Island of the Blue Dolphins by Scott O’Dell. I read a chapter or two every day.   In the story, the islanders engage in a conflict with the Aleuts who come to the island to hunt. Through a series of events that follow, a young girl named Karana lives alone on the island. At one point, the Aleuts return to the island. They have a girl with them who tries to befriend Karana. I stopped reading at this point and asked my students if Karana should accept this girl’s friendship. “No!” At first, my fourth graders were certain Karana shouldn’t trust the young woman because she was an Aleut. They discussed the pros and cons. “The Aleuts killed Karana’s father.” “Yeah, but does that mean all Aleuts are bad?” “And besides, she’s a girl. She isn’t a warrior.” “Yeah, but she's with a bunch of warriors.” I listened and a strange thing happened. My students began talking about the war in Kosovo. One of the boys in my class asserted that not all Ser...

My friend, Ruth once said, “I don’t know what it is but there’s just something about Kosova that gets under your skin.” Tom and I ventured to Kosovo in 2005 with five of my teacher education students in tow. The countryside still bore the scars of war.   Outside walls of apartment buildings in the city were destroyed, exposing vacated rooms to passersby. The country villages were also devastated. Barns had been burned and homes bombed. Armored tanks rolled down the village streets. Yet, even with all we witnessed visually, we fell in love with the people and the possibilities that lay ahead for this tiny country.   We vowed to return one day. Tom was bent on helping the Roma people near Batlava. “When we come back,“ he said, “you can teach and I’ll help the gypsies build a septic system.” Kosovo Declared Independence in 2008 In 2008 the Albanian Kosovars declared independence and the tiny nation was born. Tom and I still spoke of returning because what my frie...