"Things are not good in Uzbekistan right now. A repressive regime is clamping down on the people's natural inclination toward freedom, and there have been violent episodes in which government troops have fired on unarmed demonstrators. And, to some extent, although the Peace Corps has now been expelled from the country, I suppose that our time there, more than ten years of Peace Corps volunteers spreading knowledge of the outside world, has had something to do with the discontent. But I believe that this change is inevitable, the people's will must ultimately prevail and the regime is going to lose. I hope that it happens soon, and peacefully."
John Smart writes "A Christmas Memory from Uzbekistan"
A Christmas memory from Peace Corps duty
A commentary by John Smart
The Daily Press
Friday, December 30th, 2005 09:04:48 AM
In December of 1995, ten years ago, I was in the Central Asian republic of Uzbekistan as a new volunteer recruit in the U.S. Peace Corps. I was 55 years old which put me in a distinct minority, as most of the volunteers were in their 20s. I had traveled the world quite a bit, but this was very far from home and familiar surroundings, about the most truly foreign place I'd ever been. And, if it was a culture shock to me, it was likely more so for the younger members of our group.
We had been in training for several months in a small city not far from Tashkent, the Uzbek capital city, and were living with local families, none of whom spoke English. We studied the Uzbek language six days a week, which was a challenge indeed. Uzbek is one of the Central Asian Turkic languages, and is not at all like any language that any of us had ever come in contact with!
Christmas was coming, after which we were to be sent out to the various sites that we'd been assigned to, dispersed throughout the rather sizeable country, to be on our own and assume the duties we'd come there for. We were eagerly anticipating this, of course, but also apprehensive of leaving each other, losing our safety net. Then too, Uzbekistan is an Islamic country, so Christmas Day was not exactly a national holiday, although New Year's Day was.
We determined that we needed to have some sort of party before we left and do something to celebrate the spirit of Christmas. This was the subject of much discussion, and we finally decided to visit an orphanage and bring some holiday fun to the kids there. One of our Peace Corps staff members, an Uzbek national, knew of an orphanage which we could visit, and made the necessary arrangements.
As befitting my age, grey hair and beard (and girth, I must admit), I was selected to be the Father Christmas (New Year) character. We had made friends with the staff of the local theater group, and their costumer helped to outfit me in appropriate garb: a white wig and full beard to augment my own, a red cap and mittens, boots, and a magnificent, full length, rich green velvet robe with sequin stars and white fur trim. I looked fantastic, if I do say so myself, and I have a photo on the bulletin board above my desk to remind me!
The orphanage was in Tashkent, and the children were in the early elementary age group. We'd asked in advance what they needed, and had gone to the bazaars on shopping trips for items of clothing, as well as the sweet treats that we knew would be welcome. I had our language teacher, a wonderful woman named Dilbar, by my side as a translator, as my command of the Uzbek language, shakey at best, was not up to this, and then, these children spoke mostly Russian.
The whole experience was extraordinary, and remains vivid in my memory. The children were adorable, and so very appreciative of the attention. One episode in particular stays in my mind: a very small boy was clinging to my long velvet robe, and followed me from room to room, mumbling something
I couldn't understand. When I stopped to pay some attention to him, I saw that he was missing an eye, there was just an empty socket where his left eye should have been. I turned to ask Dilbar what he was saying, and tears were running down her cheeks. She said that he was telling me that for years he'd been praying that I would visit him someday, and now here I was. He was thanking me for answering his prayers.
I nearly lost my jolly demeanor, I can assure you. That little boy stuck to my side for our whole time there, and I can still see him clearly in my mind's eye. I wonder what's happened to him.
Things are not good in Uzbekistan right now. A repressive regime is clamping down on the people's natural inclination toward freedom, and there have been violent episodes in which government troops have fired on unarmed demonstrators. And, to some extent, although the Peace Corps has now been expelled from the country, I suppose that our time there, more than ten years of Peace Corps volunteers spreading knowledge of the outside world, has had something to do with the discontent. But I believe that this change is inevitable, the people's will must ultimately prevail and the regime is going to lose. I hope that it happens soon, and peacefully.
And I hope that the boy with one eye is all right.
John Smart lives in Park Falls.
