PLOVI BROD IZ AMERIKE - Džo Maračić-Maki

A few weeks ago when I heard this song again, I was reminded of all the Croatian seamen who go out into the Gulf of Mexico to fish, to shrimp, to dredge for oysters, to work on the oil rigs, and who are on ships carrying cargo back and forth from here to Europe and really to the whole world.

 

Some of them spend months away from home, others are gone for years.  Some never get to go home.   Some never go on board a ship.   Some stand barefoot in the sand looking out across the sea towards Home with hot tears running softly down their cheeks.   For some, the last voyage Home is the Last Voyage forever.  But we all wish the same things.  We wish freedom and prosperity for the Home and somehow, sometime, we wish for that boat sailing from America towards the beaches of Home. 

 

I asked Džo Maki if I could dedicate his song on this video to all the Croatian seamen especially in the region of the Gulf of Mexico.  He agreed.   I met Džo Maki last April at the Croatian - American Ball in Houston.  He is a very personable and fine gentleman, very talented and very gracious.  I am honored to count him among my friends.

On 8 July down here we shall have the "Blessing of the Fleet."  Perhaps you will see some of that on video right here.  Perhaps you will see the Croatian flag flying too! 

I wrote my own little "poem" as a dedication to Maki's song -

from Florida to Tampico
 there are hundreds and hundreds
 even thousands
 Croatian seaman go to their boats
 in the hours of the morning
 which other people name as night

some are away from shore for hours
 others are upon the sea for weeks
 some remain upon the shore

everyone dreams that one day
 he will be upon a boat from America
 which will find the coast of his beloved Homeland

for some this happens every year
 for many this never happens
until they are a box of ashes returning

everyone lives as near the shore as possible
 even when we are old
 we look across the sea to the east
 some dampness in our eyes
perhaps someday
someday there will be plovi brod iz Amerike
carry us to the coast of our Homeland

with Džo Maračić-Maki's permission
 the tiny Croatian community in Brownsville Texas
dedicates Maki's wonderful song
and this small video
 to all those Croatian men
 who are each day upon the Gulf of Mexico
 or who stand upon its shores
 and who all dream one dream together ...
There is one woman in our lives
who is above all others
she wears a blue skirt
and a red blouse
she wears a white sash
tied together with a red and white checkered buckle
she is our favorite lady
her name is Hrvatska
we wish to see her again before we die.

I hope you understand about the woman with the blue skirt.  These days, its the only skirt in her wardrobe.  With the help of God, it will always be the only skirt in her wardrobe.   Any other woman who has ever come into my life has had to understand that I would lay down my life for my lady in the blue skirt and red blouse.   She has always been and always will be my true mother, my true sister, and my true love all in one.   That last statement might be incomprehensible to anyone who is not Croatian in their heart, none-the-less, it is true. 

Join me in listening to this song
as we stand in the sand
looking out across the waves
waiting for that boat
which will finally sail from America
to our Home

PLOVI BROD IZ AMERIKE - Džo Maračić-Maki

do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings,

Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac

28  Lipanj 2013

 

A Bathing Beauty

"A bathing beauty??" you ask?  "Has the fellow gone wild in his old age?"

Yup.  I've gone wilder than the Mad Hatter of Alice in Wonderland.   Completely over the edge.  Wild.  And into the wilderness.   This won't be the last video which includes water, sunlight and a lady dressed only in her ....

See for yourself ...

do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings,

Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac

27  Lipanj 2013

 

Mark and Susan

"What God has put together, let no one put asunder."  With those words, two of my favorite friends,  Mark and Susan, began their married life together Sunday 23 June 2013. 

Congratulations to them!  

do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings,

Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac

27 Lipanj 2013

 

Krásná pasačka - The Beautiful Shepherdess

A few minutes ago I am writing "Sada možda ćemo gledati okolo i naći vjenčanje pjesmu pjevati zajedno, zar ne?"  or "now perhaps we look around and find a wedding song to sing together, yes?"Maybe you can tell that I am very displeased and disheartened by how the Supreme Court of the United States ruled this morning.  Maybe you can tell that I am very not happy about how the mob took over the Texas Senate proceedings last night and brought an end to orderly democratic proceedings in this once wonderful Texas.  We Croats, together with the Czechs and Slovaks and Slovenes and the Polish people struggled for five hundred years to help bring about a wonderfully free and delightful civilization in this place only to see it crumbled in one night by these pro-death hoodlums from out of town.   All we have left now is our faith in God, and our music.

 

Our faith in God.  Our music.  What a treasure.   The scum can take everything away from us and still we have faith and our music.  They cannot take these from us as long as we live.

 

So we find a sweet love song, perhaps even it is a wedding song, who knows?   I used to hear this song on radio when I was very young.  Its on czech language.  The Beautiful Shepherdess - Krásná pasačka.  Its a song about a peaceful quiet time.  Its a song about youth.  Its a song about love. 

 

As you listen - imagine yourself in a wooden rocker on a covered porch.  We are looking across the yard, past the fence, down into the pasture just a short distance.  The pasture slopes away from us down to the creek perhaps a hundred yards away.  There just beyond the creek is a grove of vigorous young maples, delightfully green.   A lovely young lady comes into view just beyond the yard fence.   Her geese are ahead of her a few feet, walking, running, playing, eating a snatch of grass, chasing bugs - doing what it is that geese do.  A young man, perhaps near her age, approaches and he says to her " Dej mi hubičku můj andělíčku

         by se slavíček neprobudil"

Ah now!  Here are the words on czech language how the song is sung:
1. [: Krásná pasačka husičky pásla
   v zeleném háji pod javorem :]
   [: Dej mi hubičku můj andělíčku
   by se slavíček neprobudil :]
2. [: Tichá hubička přece slavíčka
   v zeleném háji probudila :]
   [: Vyletěl výše zazpíval tiše
   krásná pasačka zaplakala :]
3. [: Proč ty slavíčku ty malý ptáčku
   proč děláš malé pasačce bol :]
   [: Mějme se rádi, dokud jsme mladí
   dokud nás láska k sobě svádí :]

and here they are again on english language:
Beautiful shepherdess grazing geese
down below is the green maple grove
Give me a kiss my little angel
don't wake up the nightingale
a silent song sang the nightingale
waking in the green groves
singing quietly she flew above
the beautiful shepherdess cried
why nightingale are you a little bird
why is the cowherd small
Let us be happy while we are young
while our love brings us together

and here is the song:

do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings,

Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac

26  Lipanj 2013

 

Brak

Brak je jedan muškarac i jedna žena za života.

sudovi mogu reći kako oni žele,
parlamenti mogu reći kako oni žele,
crkve mogu reći kako oni žele,
religije mogu reći kako oni žele,
, ali nitko ne može promijeniti istinu o onome što Bog govori.

Brak je jedan muškarac i jedna žena za života.Oh, i ne ubijaju djecu previše! Život je život, a mi poštujemo život.
Ne zaboravite, Bog kaže Ne ubij.

Stojim ovdje, ja mogu učiniti ništa drugo

Sada možda ćemo gledati okolo i naći vjenčanje pjesmu pjevati zajedno, zar ne?


I know, more Croatians speak on english than any other language including croatian,
so now read it on english also:

marriage is one man and one woman for lifetime.
the courts can say how they want,
parliaments can say how they want,
churches can say how they want,
religions can say how they want,
but nobody can change the truth about what God says.

marriage is one man and one woman for lifetime.
oh, and we do not kill the babies too!  Life is life and we respect life.
Do not forget, God says do not murder. 

here I stand, I can do nothing other

now perhaps we look around and find a wedding song to sing together, yes?

do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings,

Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac

26  Lipanj 2013

 

Upholding Marriage: God’s Plan and Gift

Upholding Marriage: God’s Plan and Gift A statement by the Rev. Bart Day, executive director, Office of National Mission

Today the Supreme Court issued its ruling, striking down the Defense of Marriage Act (DOMA) and allowing for gay marriage in California by virtue of Proposition 8. Though the ruling is not a surprise, we are saddened for our nation, even as we call our fellow Christians to faithfulness and prayer. As Christians, we believe and confess that God Himself instituted marriage as the life-long union of one man and one woman. Same-sex unions are contrary to God’s will, and gay marriage is, in the eyes of God, no marriage at all. As Christians, we proclaim this truth, no matter what the courts or legislatures may say. We are called not to popularity but to truth. Therefore, we call on our fellow Christians to be faithful first to God’s Word, knowing that another court is ultimately supreme. Marriage is a fundamental building block of society, binding parents to their offspring. Every child benefits from the nurture of a mother and the leadership of a father. While having one mother is a blessing, having two mothers or two fathers is confusing for the child and detrimental to her well-being. The divorce culture has done great harm to the institution of marriage as well, and The Lutheran Church—Missouri Synod (LCMS) has and will continue to respond to that heartache with Christ’s comfort while simultaneously working to restore a culture where marriage is upheld. While this occasion reminds us that Scripture calls homosexuality sinful (see Lev. 18:22; 20:13; Rom. 1:24–27), the Bible also says plainly that those who “hunger and thirst for righteousness,” that is to say, those who repent and show genuine sorrow over their sin, are forgiven and loved by Christ. And so as Christ’s Church, we forgive and love too, following His lead with compassion and humility. We forgive and love because we are all sinners in need of His grace and mercy; because no matter the sin, we have all rebelled against our Creator and fallen prey to unbelief; because He has justified us by grace through faith, freely given and joyfully received (Rom. 3:23–24); because Christ has reconciled us to the Father; because He has declared us righteous and we are. Please consider sharing this email with your congregation, family and friends, reminding them that the LCMS will continue to teach marriage according to God’s plan and gift. We will continue to proclaim marriage as a picture of Christ’s love for His bride, the church. And we will continue to be a place of forgiveness, mercy and healing for all people, even as we will continue to proclaim God’s truth in love. As we move forward, we offer up our prayers for the nation and particularly for marriage, family and children. Rev. Bart Day, executive director LCMS Office of National Mission ================================================== I concur completely with the foregoing. do sljedeći put, blagoslov - until next time, blessings, Canovals a.k.a. Slavonac 26  Lipanj 2013