The bus-ride from Struga, Macedonia, was terrible. The year is 1999 - middle of July  I was ill on top of it. Endless waiting on the border to Bulgaria.   Early morning I arrived in Sofia, Bulgaria.  The rucksack was heavy and the straps were eating their way into my shoulders.  The railway-station was big and unfriendly. Nobody spoke my languages.  I’m soon about to leave for Budapest – 30 hours on the train. I had no food, and it was early in the morning and nothing to buy. All I had was a bottle of water . 

30 hours going by train – through Bulgaria – Romania – Hungary and Budapest.  And burning hot.  And there was no food  to buy before Budapest. 

I had a kind of a sleeper - combo.  There were few people on the train … and we could not communicate.  But next to my sleeper there was a young little shy Bulgarian girl – 19 years old.  I was an old man of 54.  Maria was her name. And she spoke English. Her friends called her Max – for some unknown reason. She was also on her way to Budapest. 

Maria was going to a conference – or something – on sustainable development.  Even we did not talk much, we found we had something in common – a passion for peace and righteousness and justice.

I was sitting in my compartment, trying to read.  I did not tell her that I did not have food . 
We had been on our way 6 –7 hours.  Suddenly she comes with her bottle of water – she had drunk half of it.  “You must drink the rest…”, she said quietly and reserved. “No I can’t drink your water.”   But she is not giving in. She is stubbornly shy.  After an hour she is back. It’s soon time for sleeping: “My mother boiled some eggs.  I’d like to share with you.”   I protested, but she insisted  immovably.  But quietly and determined she told me that I had to eat the eggs.  I said “thank”.  And she went into her room.  I pealed the eggs, cut them carefully with a little pocketknife.  I had a sacred feeling of life. “Life is sacred”  I  ate slowly and devotionally. Somehow I felt that the whole thing was sort of divine – if angels are, may be they are like this?  I said my prayers – thanked God – blessed my wife and 4 children that are about her age.   And went to sleep. Next morning I woke up feeling happy.  I met Maria again outside my compartment.  She still had this shy, but secure smile, like she had found the secret of life somehow.  And then she said: “My mother made some pieces of bread to me. I’ll like to share them with you.”  “This is too crazy”, I thought.  And I was not really hungry. But protests were of no use. “No, I want you to eat!”   The bread was wonderfully homemade, by her Bulgarian mother.  Some sort yellow cheese – may be homemade also?  The whole thing was heavenly.  I ate slowly. The best breakfast I ever had in my life. 

I was on my way to a seminar on Peace and Conflict in Central European  University Budapest.  Here, on the train, I met human kindness.  She did this to an old man!  The moment was sanctified.  Almost like the angels were singing: “Peace on earth, and God’s good will toward men”

This girl showed me more than words can express….it’s about peace on earth.

Les også fra togturen Budapest - Sofia
Fotvasken i Makedonia 2000
Møte med serbisk major på toget Beograd-Skopje
Struga 1999

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