SLOVENIA'S 5 CORE VALUES

It was set to Slovenske Konjice. On hills that smelled of vines and on old bridge stones that knew more secrets than any man.

When she grew up and moved to Ljubljana for work, this compass suddenly started to to tease. It beeped just when she was about to fall asleep, and drew green landscapes in front of her eyes as she looked at the computer. But Marta didn't admit it. The only one who noticed that something was wrong was her best friend Tatiana.

One Friday, Tatjana knocked on Martin's door in Ljubljana. She was still carrying a warm pizza in her hands, and she looked at her in a way that didn't accept excuses.

»Marta, you're missing something,« she said. »And no, it's not the iron in my blood,« she added before Marta could even open her mouth. Marta rolled her eyes and made some tea to drink with the pizza. 

As they sat at the table, Tatiana tilted her head, »You miss home. But not the house, not the road, but the people, the belonging. It's being part of something.« 

Marta wanted to say that this was not true, that she was an adult and had her own job and her own life. But when she looked out of the window, where the fog was clinging lazily to the stairs, she remained silent.

The next day they drove to Konjice; according to Tatiana, they arrived at heart service. The fields that they both knew by heart lined the road and Marta felt something inside her slowly anchoring. 

Walking through the old town, they met a shoemaker who always remembered Marta for her brown hair. Then some children ran past them, coming back from practice, and one of them exclaimed, »Marta, when are you coming to cheer for us on the playground?«, even though it had been three years since she had cheered for them.

Tatiana smiled, »See? People think you still live here.«

In the evening, they went to a vineyard above the town. The sun was slowly extinguished and far below, lights were lit up like small signals of belonging. Martha stood on the hill and suddenly realised that belonging is not a chain. It is not something that holds you in one place. It is something you can ignore until you realise that something is missing..

»I think I was trying to be someone else all the time,« she said quietly.

Tatiana lightly twisted her elbow. »Real people let you grow without losing you. That's why belonging fine. Not ownership, but connection."

And in that moment, Marta felt that her inner compass was no longer wrong, but pointing her in the right direction again. Not towards the place, but towards the people she carried inside her, whether she lived in Konjice or elsewhere.

As they were heading back to Ljubljana, Tatjana remarked, »You know what? The next time you forget you're ours, I'll come to your door again. With a new pizza. And I won't leave until you remember.«

Marta laughed. And for the first time in a long time, she felt at home. Not because of the road under the car, but because of her friend in the passenger seat and the quiet feeling of belonging to a world where she had never really been alone.

Justina Strašek, 18. 11. 2025