Linden trees

Well it is June here in Sarajevo and as in many other places around the world st this time, the Linden trees are blooming. Here they are called Lipa and I usually run along Lipa Alley in the morning and it is so nice to run under trees that are filled with fragrant flowers.
On May 29 I gave a talk on Sport and Meditation at the Academy of Sport in Sarajevo, to around 70 students and 11 of them are interested to learn more about meditation.
Tomorrow I will go to a training session of the Sarajevo Athletic club and meet with some of the guys, I am thinking to maybe see if I can train with them during the summer.

Projects

A week ago I had a meeting with the director of the International Peace Center in Sarajevo, he was very helpful in arranging the planting of a Peace tree in 1997. Over the years the plaque by the tree has been damaged and eventually disappeared. So the meeting was about dedicating a new plaque and actually re-dedicating the Peace tree. The director was a bit cautious at first since a few years ago a fountain to the children who died in the war ha been placed nearby, but eventually was quite enthusiastic and will arrange for a ceremony for both in the very near future. I will keep you posted on that.
Then Tuesday this week I went to the Academy of Sport in Sarajevo to speak with a Professor about me giving a talk there on Sport and Meditation and since next week is the last week of school he recommended I give one then , so on Wednesday May 29 at 15:00 I will speak to students from the running class and anyone else who wants to come, I also have the chance to give 2 more talks when the new school year starts :).

Spring almost flies by

Spring arrived in Sarajevo and then it  almost became summer a moment later. with temperatures entering into the 30 degree centigrade range. My friend Elvir asked me if I wanted to play tennis with him, he has not played before so we took 2 lessons with a local coach. It helped me a lot to remember some long ago learned skills. Now on Saturday mornings we play tennis., in our first match I beat him 6-4, 6-3 on the strength of me holding serve 3 times, but both of us are improving and we have a lot of fun, which is of course the main thing.
Rain and cooler temps have seen Spring return and of course as a gardener this will help the plants.
On Sunday Elvir and I ran the Run for Europe 4 k race, he has been running 4k in 30 minutes in training and I paced him to a time of 19:31 which of course he was very pleased with. He wants to run a half marathon in September so this is a good boost for his confidence.

Last weekend

On Saturday 3 of us drove to Banja Luka, it's about a 3 hour drive. After about 30 to 40 minutes of highway  you get the chance to see lots of nature and a few towns. In the evening 10 of us had a get together which included a meal for which a few of us provided an item.Then we drove back to Sarajevo, arriving just after 1am.
Sunday was a day for Spring cleaning which took place in the afternoon and was about a 2 1/2 hour excursion :) , a lot of dust can collect over the winter and the windows needed a good cleaning. Everything feels so much better now.

Overcast

It's a cloudy Monday here in Sarajevo, but the temperature is quite nice. For the last few nights we have had some rain so things are growing and it is supposed to get warmer as the week goes on. Inspired by this I have been potting on some of the new plants I started over the Autumn and winter moving them into bigger pots. I have also started sowing some of my vegetable seeds, Tomato and Peppers for now, but more to follow. My plan is to have fresh salad veggies growing on my balcony so that I can harvest as I need them. I have orange trees that I started last summer and plan to try Lemon and maybe Mandarin oranges this year

Easter

Here in Sarajevo there are not too many that celebrate Easter at this time in Bosnia it is mostly in Hercegovina, which is mostly Croatian and in the Serbian parts of Bosnia they celebrate a week later as with the rest of the Orthodox Cristian world.
Anyway it was a nice Easter weekend weather wise with very Spring like temperatures around 15 C though Easter Monday did show us some snow and rain followed by Sun. Quite a few trees are starting to show flowers and there are Daffodils and Hyacinth just down the street from me so Winter is slowly going away.

Half Marathon and more

March second I drove with 2 friends to Nis, Serbia to participate in the Half Marathon portion of the Winter Marathon there.This is the 4th time in a row that I have gone there. Four races ago I injured myself during training 2 days before so did not run, instead counting and supporting the runners and the 2 friends I ahd gone there with.
Morning of the race was cool but sunny and it got warmer as the race went on. I had some minor stomach problems but was still only a little bit slower than previous years.
Had a nice swim after the race and then got a ride to Slovenia with 3 of my friends who had come to also run the Half Marathon. Arriving in Ljubljana a little after midnight it was cooler and quite a lot of snow around.

What I've been up to.

At the end of February I went for a couple of days to Banja Luka. , an old friend from Canada was visiting for a few days and it was a nice chance to spend some time with him. The weather was quite cold, but the visit was pleasant, both of us like to talk and we had much to talk about, however the visit was quite short. He arrived around lunch time on Friday and because of bus and train schedules, had to leave late afternoon Saturday to arrive in Berlin, Germany for some meetings. I think maybe I have convinced him to visit Sarajevo next time he is in the region.

A day late

It's a day late due to me traveling yesterday, but here is the last poem in the series One Day ;

That tastes so good
I want to eat it all
but if I do
I'll blow up like a ball

So just one piece
will do for me just now
that just one piece
will have to be my lot.

Signs of Spring

Walked into the city this morning and on the way back I noticed  a bush with no leaves but a few pale yellow flowers on it..  Later I also noticed pussy willow. Signs of Spring indeed.

Today's poem;

Don't shine that
in my eyes
I can't see
where I'm going

It's bad enough
to walk here
without even knowing

Will I fall or
will I not
should I just
stand here on this spot

The only way
I'll ever know
is to move forward
just to go.

Just a hint of snow

This morning while I was out running there was just a hint of snow, the odd snowflake falling as I ran by the river. However I think that maybe it was a little too warm and eventually rain began to fall as it has done all day.

Today's poem;

It's that time of year
just like the last
climb through the ages
from the past

Rememberings from
years gone by
they make you laugh
they make you cry

Reflecting now
upon your life
to set the tone
to journey on.

A cloudy day in Sarajevo

Well it's a bit of a cloudy day in Sarajevo, but an old friend called me late morning and we had an early lunch and a nice chat in the city.

When will they stop
maybe never
they just go on
for ever and ever

To inspire
and to give joy
a gift from heaven
for this little boy.

One Day

One Day
is all it took
to get the content
for this book

It came out flowing
like the rain
it came out softly
with no pain

The words jumped out
I wrote them down
to give the answer
to your frown.

Power cuts.

In the 5 months I have lived in the apartment here in Sarajevo I have had I think 4 power cuts. It is usually the block of maybe 4 or 5 buildings.It probably happens in other parts of the city too from time to time and it only lasts for 45 minutes to an hour. Not sure what it is but it happens during the daytime and at night.
Anyway here is today's poem;

The Sun is warm
and gives me strength
warming now
my complete length

The rain refreshes
in the heat
the Moon the Stars
this day complete.

Valentine's Day

Happy Valentine's Day to all. Here is the poem for today;

Rain has
washed the air
Sun now
brightens all around

Footsteps move along
making headway
on the ground

Birds are flying
the sky is blue
I am making progress
on my way to you.

This Day

This day
the words have
come for me

Come to carry away

Carry away
these feelings not meant
for me
not meant for me
this day.

What are you doing

What are you doing?
there's people over there
you'll make a fool
of yourself
have people laugh
and stare

I know that you're
a showman
and like to entertain
I know that you're
not stopping
you'll do it again
and again.

The Cowshed

The Cowshed's in the corner
the stream runs
down the hill
the waterwheel
is turning
and grinding
at the mill

It's nice here
in the country
folk greet you
with a smile

The air is sweet
and lively
I would walk
a country mile.

Snow time plus poem

The last couple of days we have been getting light snow and this morning when I went for my run, there was around 10cm ( 4 inches ) of fresh crunchy snow on the ground, though most roads and footpaths had been cleared.
Here is today's poem;

This country is finished
George
I heard the man say
It's not like it used to be
back in the day

When people
were friendly
and gave up their seat
when streets were tidy
and children
kept neat

Our mom's
made our beds
and we played
in the street.

This country's
not finished
soon strong
it shall be

with a coming together
of you and of me.

On a snowy day

It's snowy outside so here a warm poem ;

The warm drink
is in my hand
I swallowed it down
and life is grand

It's warmth inside me
spreads throughout
and comfort
now I feel.