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LETER FROM
MAKSI
I don't know where to start. Well,
things happened this way. Last half a year I was playing some tunes on my
synthesizer. Subconsciously as they were recorded on my tape deck in the
60's, their chronology was: Tune # 1 "Give me a ticket for an
airplane." Then the next tune had a text in it "…I’ll be
there…" followed by "… Happy together."
Now I let you draw your own conclusion.
Vladimir phones me up one evening at
the end of March, right after his return form Slovakia and tells me:
"Maksi Ty hovado, they are looking
for you in Bratislava.
"What have I done?"
"By a fluke I bought a paper and found that there is a world wide
reunion of Generation 1968 in the V-klub and Peter Lipa would like to see
you there. He didn’t know your last name and your address and I told
them that I know your whereabouts. I also told them that in the winter
time you are low on finances, so I will buy a plane ticket for you and
bring you there for the reunion."
"Hold your horses, Vladimir I am really sick as I was just diagnosed
with myelodysplasia (Maksi's bone marrow isn't producing enough red blood
cells-Editors note), to this time untreatable condition. The only
supportive care is provided by frequent blood transfusions."
"Ask your doctor, and if he will let you go, we are going."
Doctor saw no reason why I shouldn't
go, so off we went. What an experience!
It felt like alternate propulsion took
you back in time 30 years and continued where you left of in 1968. Only
the aged faces of my contemporaries reminded me the reality. The areas of
V-Klub used to accommodate in the past 300-320 people were now crowding by
my estimate with over 500. The weather in Bratislava was very humid. Add
to it the body heat of that many people, all this reinforced the feeling
of the atmosphere of "Good old days." Three days non-stop party.
Running on 3-4 hours of sleep. I didn't want to miss anything; see the
reunited musicians for whom in the sixties I tried to create an
environment by my mischievous behavior, so they would unwind; than meet
with the old faces. The only way I was able to decipher their identity was
reading their eyes. Some people have changed drastically, so you had to
ask them who are they, followed by big hugs. I managed to recognize about
75% of them. People spread all over the world- Australia, South Africa,
USA, Canada, England, Sweden, Switzerland, Germany, Austria and who knows
from where else from were all at the reunion. So imagine yapping with them
to bridge the thirty-year gap. Mouths were drying out. You had to wet them
by free-flowing beer, wine or fruit juices. I wished the day would last 48
hours. It was very rough schedule, but every minute was worth it. One can’t
describe it by words. You had to be there!
Very many thanks, Vladimir-Buddy.
That was so far my best medicine.
Maksi Dubrovay
Where
is Makši Dubrovay?
World wide
reunion of Veckar's "GENERATION 1968"
Go
to Makši's pictures over the years
Go
to Makši's 62nd Surprise birthday party
Go
to Makši's final days
Celebration of Makši's life party at Watch
Lake Community Hall on September 28, 2002
Scattering Makši's ashes at his
favorite spot near his house on September 29, 2002
Scattering Makši's ashes at
Bute Look Out above Watch Lake, BC, on October 13, 2002
Makši's
burial in Bratislava on November 12, 2002
Published in the Slovak Heritage Live newsletter Volume 6, No. 3, Fall
1998
Copyright © Vladimir Linder 1998
3804 Yale
Street, Burnaby, British Columbia, Canada V5C 1P6
The
above article may not be copied, reproduced, republished, or redistributed
by any means including electronic, without the express written permission
of Vladimir Linder. All
rights reserved.
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