Главная страница «Первого сентября»Главная страница журнала «Английский язык»Содержание №7/2010

East Or West – Home Is Best

East or west – home is best; of course you know this famous expression. It’s really true, and that’s why I would like to tell you about my town.

I was born in a small town called Leninsk. It’s situated in the southeastern part of Volgograd region on the right side of the river Akhtuba. The Akhtuba is a branch of the Volga. Together with the Volga the Akhtuba has formed the Volgo-Akhtubian flood-plains, where thousands of people have rest. Our flood-plains are famous for their clean and healthy air, unforgettable fishing and incomparable rest.

I would like to tell you why the Akhtuba is called so. In our town everybody can tell you the legend about our river. The legend says: “Once upon a time there lived a very rich merchant and he had a very beautiful daughter, whose name was Tuba. Father loved Tuba very much and he always wished her only the best. His daughter was about 18 years old and father was already going to marry her to a rich man. But one morning Tuba went off for a walk. She was walking for a very long time and suddenly she heard somebody’s singing. She stopped and listened. It was a young man who was sitting on the meadow and singing. Tuba liked him at once.

The evening had already come and Tuba went back home. The next day she again returned to the beautiful youth and after that Tuba was on this meadow every morning.

They loved each other, but her father didn’t know about their love, and even didn’t suspect that his daughter loved another man – not the one he had chosen for her.

Soon Tuba had to marry the rich fiancé, but she didn’t want to. And she decided to run away together with her darling youth. At night she led out her favourite horse from the stable and galloped away. She hoped nobody would know about her escape, but somebody saw her leaving and told her father about it. He became very angry and called his people to chase her. At the same time, Tuba was already running away with her darling. In front of them Tuba’s father appeared, and there was a precipice and below was the river. Tuba said to her darling her last, farewell words, jumped into the river and drowned. The youth galloped away, and when Tuba’s father saw what his daughter had done, he stood on this precipice crying and shouting: ‘Ah, Tuba, Tuba! Ah, Tuba, Tuba!...’”

A beautiful story, isn’t it? And would you like to know a little story about an old name of our town?

Many years ago our town was the village Prishib. Our town got such a strange name because people were floating trees on the Volga, and some of the trees “were hurt” to the sides of the Akhtuba and people used these trees for building houses. Therefore, on the river side a small village formed and people, not to forget its origin, named the village Prishib.

I think I’ve told enough legends. Now about modern Leninsk. Our town is a town with a population of about 15 thousand people. It’s a small quiet town; you can find such towns all over Russia.

Of course here we have the main square which is named after Lenin, where there is a monument to the great leader.

In our town we have three schools: No. 1, No. 2, No. 3. We also have a school for deaf children, a sports school, a club of athletics, a Palace of Culture, a children and youth center, a tourist center near the Akhtuba, and a lot of other interesting things and places.

I myself study in School No. 1, which is very famous in the Leninsk district for its children – they’re sportsmen, artists, singers, dancers, and simply very clever children. Our school has won Presidential Awards and other prestigious bonuses. This means that our school has that honorary number l not in vain.

Well, now I want to tell you what happened to me two years ago. As I understand this proverb, “East or west – home is best”, in the literal sense, this story will be suitable.

Two years ago I had the luck to visit Moscow; it’s a huge city, fussy and infinitely beautiful...

But in spite of all Moscow’s beauty and variety, I wanted to get home. Such a city as Moscow, huge and noisy, hardly suits a person who has grown up in a remote, small village. Yes, you can be used to living here; though it’s not so easy...

When I came back home, I felt as if I had not been at home more than a year, but in fact only three weeks had passed.

An unexplained feeling of longing and love to my native Leninsk has filled me from head to foot... Here a familiar yard, a doorway, a door, a long-awaited lock – and I’m at home. Silence... Well... during three weeks my ears heard a lot of Moscow noise, and now they heard the familiar and native silence. At that moment, a lot of thoughts filled my head. And I thought: “Yes, I’ve been to Moscow. Yes, I’ve seen a lot, though not everything. But my native town is sweeter than all. I was born here, I grew up here and nothing will substitute for its quiet streets, evening lights not quite so bright as in Moscow, its fresh air and our beautiful river Akhtuba with its flood-plains. Wherever I’ve been, wherever I’ll be, all the time I’ll miss my native town. Yes, Moscow is not Leninsk, but Leninsk is not Moscow. What I can say is: “East or West – home is best...”

By Anastasia Shirokova ,
School No. 1, Leninsk, Volgograd Reg.