#Pilgrimage_Diary — 21 September 2025. #Matevossian90
The homeland is this maple, whose leaf you may see on another country’s flag. The homeland is a winding, muddy, difficult road that made you look back and say, “I cannot believe we crossed it,” while your leader smiled: “Make way for those who believe.”
The homeland is the forest of wolves, jackals, a leopard, deer and a bear through which you walked, hearing so many stories about its inhabitants. The homeland is your great writer’s home and the apple tree in its yard, planted by his father Ignat, whose fruit became your reward.
The homeland is Bob, the large dog who met each of you and whom you came to love. The homeland is the school that bears the writer’s name, its bell, and the clearing washed by rain and flooded with sunlight.
The homeland is your smiling eyes. “The homeland is you,” said the writer whose small homeland you visited yesterday as pilgrims. Happy Independence Day!
