“You know Georgian people are very
religious. Very. So if they lose this hope
for a good future, they will lose their faith
in God.”
--Irena SarishviU
There are times when, no matter how
hard you try, putting words down on
paper will never do a story justice.
We were two naive journalism students
hoping to find a couple good stories in the
Soviet Union. We’d read about what had
happened in Georgia. We thought we’d be
lucky if we could get people to talk about
the situation at all.
Nothing could have prepared us for our
four days in Tbilisi. We had no idea how
proud these people were of their “country,’’
or how that pride had eventually caused
them so much pain.
It seems hard to imagine seeing a grown
man cry, just because you told him his
country was beautiful. Or a group of com
plete strangers toasting you -- the Americans
— in a small, rural restaurant. Or college
students who believe so strongly in democ
racy that they’re willing to put their futures
- and their lives - on the line.
Perhaps the hardest thing to understand
in Tbilisi was why, in the shadow of such a
powerful government, would so many
people fight so adamantly for a day that,
most likely, will never come. It strikes an
unnatural chord of patriotism to think that
democracy could mean so much in the eyes
of people who do not take it for gftnted.
It’s been months now since we left Tbil
isi. Occasionally, we’ll read small blurbs in
major newspapers mentioning violence in
the area between the Soviet military and
small groups of Georgian nationalists. For
the most part, however, all has been quiet.
Still, you can’t help but wonder.
We made friends in Georgia. They
opened their lives to us, their sorrow and
their hope, asking only for understanding in
return. We left them to their problems, and
came back with a new understanding of
how important freedom is.
We wonder how the Soviet government
will deal with the nationality question in
Georgia. We fear for the lives of the friends
we left behind. We have no way of knowing
how many of them are doing, or if what little
we hear is true about their situation.
They had hoped we would tell their
stories so that others could understand. We
did so, with the constant memories of all
they had given us. Though they never will
read what is printed here, we need to say
thank you (gmatlobt) and add that our
thoughts are with them.
- Lee Rood and Amy Edwards