mayors.
There are not enough words to describe the mayor i met in a local village this week.
i could start by saying that i wasnt expecting to meet him
I have met other village mayors, encouraging them to be ethical leaders and supportive of their communities children, however on this village visit,
i was prepared only to meet the local priest, when visiting the beautiful village church
on the contrary, in walks three additional large men
the one in front, is a large, unshaven man, wearing a dirty white t-shirt, faded jeans, sandals and socks
its only 1:30pm and he smells like stale beer and cigarettes
'he's the mayor' i'm told
in meeting me, he not only does the traditional kissing of hand,
but proceeds to grab my face and kiss my forehead
[but let me say, that leading up to this moment, the librarian had been going on and on all morning about how handsome and good looking and charming their mayor was]
what...
after the church, we were heading back to the library, where the WV supported kids clubs were located
but the mayor had other plans
due to our language barrier, he decided to go with a more physical approach
he grabs my hand and literally pulls us into the town hall
there, we are lead into a light blue room, lined with huge Romanian flags
as I look around, staring at the red, yellows and blues
the librarian whispers to me 'he's a bit of a patriot'
'yeah it looks like it,' i reply
we sit down, infront of his typical romanian, 'I'm in charge' desk
huge, unnecessary and has hardly anything on it
he yells down the hall for coffee
tells the little girls we are with to go get some suc [juice or soda] and hands them 10 RON
then sits back in his chair and unwraps his new box of Kent cigarettes
he offers me one in Romanian,
and I reply, 'No Mulţumesc'
"You speak Romanian!?" he gasps
[like no one would be able to tell what someone was saying who had an unlit cigarette in hand, reaching toward you]
"mic, mic Romanian" [little, very little Romanian]
"Forte Bine" [very good then!]
after the coffees, soda's and water arrive
the mayor looks at his desk
and notes his three flag statue of the Romanian flag, supported by EU and NATO flags
"You are very Patriotic" I say
he agrees, hands ME the flags, says they are for me as a gift, to always remember their village
I kindof awkwardly laugh, as it is a very nice gift, but the NATO flag is just getting me
after I thank him, he begins on his mayor shpeal
starts in on how he loves his community, how he loves his people, how he loves americans
how he wants the current Romanian Prime Minister to die
and......how he loved Ceauşescu
"CE?!" I say [WHAT?!]
"Da"
he hasnt mispoken, he actually loves Ceauşescu
the Librarian is shaking her head, smiling, head in hands just laughing, shaking her head
after more coffee
photos by the flags, holding flags
and another kiss on the forehead
we leave
as we walk away, the librarian turns to me and says,
'he is a bad mayor, but isnt he handsome'
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