Gate City Gazette: We have a Sister!

When Kevin Costner (Robin Hood) discovers that Will Scarlett is his brother, he delivers the classic line, "I have a brother?" It is a question and a statement combined, as he never knew that he had a brother, but now that he knows, he declares it for the world to know. I kind of felt that way yesterday when I discovered that we have a sister, and I want you to know it.

My next door neighbors are from Belarus, a former Soviet Union country in eastern europe. They are a quiet family and keep to themselves and we occasionally speak greetings when we see each other. I was working in the front yard yesterday when the wife drove in from work. Her mother is a quiet little lady who loves to grow flowers in the beds around the house. Her mom has been back in europe for the entire summer, so when she spoke, I inquired how her mom was doing.
"Oh, she will be back in November," she said.
We then talked about her work, and I discovered that I knew a lady who worked with her.
I asked how her mother was enjoying Belarus and she explained that her mother was in Moldova which is in between Ukraine and Romania and close to Belarus. She was born in Belarus, raised in Siberia and then settled in Moldova before immigrating to the USA..
"Wow", I said, "I have friends who adopted a child from Moldova."
"Yes," she said, "That has been a common thing since the capital city of Moldova became the sister city to Greensboro "
"I didn't know that," I said.
We chatted a bit more and when I went back home, I searched to learn more about our sister city. I discovered that the city of Greensboro became an official "sister city" to the district of Buiucani in the city of Chisineau, Moldova in June of 2000.
According to the official website for Moldova, "The capital of Moldova is considered to be one of the greenest cities in Europe. There are many parks in the city and the trees grow on almost every street."
Sounds like someone made a good choice in selecting a sister city for Greensboro.

My neighbors have been in North Carolina since 2002, gone through the green card process, and are now citizens of the USA. They have been gainfully employed since arrival and they are a credit to the community. They have two fine sons who are in high school and preparing for college. When she spoke of growing up in Siberia, she told me that people were distrustful of one another and the city that she was raised in had a high crime rate. They are all so happy to be in America and they are grateful for the opportunity to raise their family here.They are good neighbors and they see the world through a different prism than those of us who have always known freedom in the land of the free. I wonder if she knows that Dolly Madison might have played in her yard over two hundred years ago.