SLOVENIA'S 5 CORE VALUES

Usually there are many more of us around the table; four generations who belong to each other unconditionally. And a song - most often a folk song. It is an indestructible bond with my late father. His bass and organ have fallen silent in the cold winter evening, but both still resonate in our memories. He bequeathed to his five children a love of music and introduced us to multi-voiced folk singing. He gave us the key to open people's hearts. He connected us to the roots of the Slovenian nation, from where we draw inspiration for our creativity. 

Together with my mother, they taught us to respect and preserve our cultural heritage, but above all they encouraged us to sing, which is why song is our faithful companion. When it hurts, we find comfort in it. It warms us when the cold wind blows. It relaxes us when we are numb. It is our source and our estuary and everything in between. It is inscribed in golden letters in the family memory.

For decades, my sister Magdalena and I have been avidly researching local cultural heritage, carefully recording what we learn from the elderly, bringing to light what lay hidden and forgotten, and reviving what is almost extinct. Most of our attention is devoted to folk songs, which we have recently revived together with another sister and three singers. We have given ourselves the name TriDvaEna. When I sing folk songs in a folk way, I feel particularly alive. They live inside me and can't wait to be shared with others. They touch my heart in a special way for which I cannot find an expression. I am also passing on my love of folk songs to my grandchildren. Since all four of them play instruments, we often sing and play together. So this song has found its way to the fourth generation of our family, which gives me hope that the family's commitment to this kind of cultural heritage will be passed on to the next generation.

I like to sing songs to the sick and lonely to cheer them up and brighten their moments. I do this alone or in a group. I like to sing songs for someone's birthday, for children at school and kindergarten, and at many cultural events. I carry a poem with me everywhere, because I am aware of its tremendous power. It is a priceless expression of cultural heritage. Whoever does not put down roots is disinherited by life, says the conversation. I am more aware of this every day.

Leaders of all political regimes knew that songs and singing were the strength of a nation, so they banned music in many places because they did not want people to be connected to each other. So let us sing as often as possible - in society or alone, because song harmonises and unites. Let us preserve what we have been given. Let us draw from the rich cultural treasure of our ancestors.

A folk song is an expression of the soul, a record of an ancient memory. It aims to say what the heart feels. It is a fountain of joy and sincerity, with no room for wickedness. 

The world needs a song like this right now; connecting, reconciling, uplifting, gentle. To sharpen the edge of words and looks, to break down the boundaries that keep us self-sufficient, and to drown out the noise of weapons. So let's go, because it costs us nothing, but it does us good.

Jerica Strle