School is over. There is a lot of knowledge, but no one learns life better than grandma. It is an encyclopedia of love and an anthology of the most beautiful fairy tales.
I packed my things and left the city by train, traveling to the village of Poljana, where the river Pakra and the mountain Papuk are, but also long fields planted with wheat, corn, sunflower and clover with four leaves that bring happiness. In the pastures, my grandmother and I lead the cows to graze the grass, and as we pass through meadows rich in medicinal herbs, my grandmother explains to me what the grass cures. We chose the dandelion flower because we make honey from it.
Grandma kneaded the best bread and baked it in an old oven, and then the whole street smelled. Her apple and cinnamon cakes leave a taste that takes her thoughts to some old times, when princes and princesses walked in the surrounding woods and built their happiness in fairy tales that are best told by grandma, because in them the princess always bears my name and defeats monsters, dragons, winds and storms.
In the yard is a real zoo, where cats and mice, rabbits, roosters and chickens, turkeys, geese, sheep and pigs play. My pet is the dog Švrćo, because he is my grandmother’s faithful companion when he goes to the river to catch fish. Yes, my grandmother enjoys fishing so she taught me that skill too.
She taught me how to sew, I make slippers from old clothes, because everything is recycled with her, because she says that it is a shame to throw things away. She is thrifty towards herself, but she is generous towards me and always surprises me with a gift. This summer, she tied my socks for the winter, and they will keep me warm until I’m close to her.
Dijana Uherek Stevanović