February 8 is a Slovenian national holiday - Prešeren's Day. We started the 2nd semester of supply teaching lessons of Slovenian language by talking about France Prešeren and his works.
Classes are still held at a distance. We gathered online, read stories about Prešeren's life and researched who is who in his life. Our students know a lot about the greatest Slovenian poet and every year they add a new stone to the mosaic of their knowledge.
Prešeren's days are already traditional in Banja Luka. In February 2020, the curators of the Gorenjska Museum Kranj visited us, we socialised at workshops and at the opening of the exhibition about Valentin Vodnik. There are no gatherings this year, but the students have prepared a cultural program anyway. We celebrated February 8 by writing songs, creating drawings and taking photos. Older primary and secondary school students connected with their peers from Switzerland, and a film was made that proves that creativity has no limits.
Cultural institutions in Slovenia are still closed, but there will be many events on February 8 this year. All events have moved online, which means that they are available to all Slovenians living abroad. We can listen to recitals, watch plays, visit exhibitions, we can even virtually walk through the places where France Prešern grew up. Everyone can find something that interests them. With the students from Slatina, we watched the narrative-musical play Behind Nine Mountains. Anja Štefan, together with musicians from the Ljubljana Castle, told fairy tales, and we all watched the performance from our armchairs.
February 8 is a day when we think about our attitude towards culture. At a time when we are not allowed to socialise and stay at home due to the pandemic, we are accompanied by beautiful music, good movies and interesting books. They help us think about ourselves and our place in society. In Cankar's home, largest cultural centre of Slovenia, they say: "Let the word corona be replaced by another word on C - culture, at least for a short time this year."
This year's cultural holiday will try to sow hope. The term "summons hope", taken from Prešeren's toast, is the title of the national celebration. Cultural institutions hope to be able to open their doors wide soon, and Slovenians abroad to visit Slovenia again, explore its cultural heritage and invite Slovenian artists. Culture reflects the soul of the nation, so getting to know Slovenian culture is an important part of the activities of Slovenian associations.
Barbara Hanuš
Translated by Ana Marjanović
