SLOVENIA'S 5 CORE VALUES

For him, it wasn't something extraordinary that you do here and there, but the foundation on which the world stands. He was brought up this way in his hometown of Garešnica, where people believed that a person's true light comes when someone else needs a hand. My grandfather carried this with him all his life, like a stone deeply planted in the earth, which cannot be moved no matter what storms it is exposed to.

From a young age, he did a hundred things at once. If you asked him what his profession was, he would not be able to give a clear answer. He has repaired cars, driven for an international freight forwarder, been a welder and many other things in between. And he did it all the same way - with hands that could do almost anything and a heart that could do even more.

When we were little, we were cousins, Cousins, Grandma and Grandpa went to the seaside together almost every year. Our summer holidays were something special. Not because of the luxury - far from it, but because of the people. No sooner had we parked the caravan at the campsite than our neighbours brought us something to welcome us - a watermelon, a home-made pastry or a bottle of home-made drink. There was always something. And my grandmother often said, »That's because Grandpa is always helping someone. People give back in their own way.«

Rajko was something special in the camp. He never sat in a chair and waited for the day to pass. If there was anything crashed - a fridge, a car, a caravan or a boat, they've come to him. He knew how to fix them all. And before the man had even finished his sentence, Grandpa was holding up his hands and saying, »Bring it, we'll take a look.« It didn't matter whether it was dark, hot or we were just heading to payday. Helping was always his first priority.

And this is also the story that we often tell each other in the family, because it carries everything that my grandfather was.

It was Saturday evening, the day before our annual trip to the seaside. We packed our things (towels, blankets), prepared food and checked if we had everything. It was that nice chaos before the holiday. Suddenly the phone rang. My grandfather answered and I knew immediately from the sound of his voice that it was something important. It was Janko, our long-time neighbour from the campsite.

He was desperate. His car's boat jack broke and was destroyed. Unless someone fixed it, they would not be able to go to sea. He said that he had heard from someone that Rajko was the best welder he knew and that he would ask him for help.

My grandfather did not hesitate for a second. He didn't say we would be on the road early the next morning. He did not say he did not have time. He did not say that he could do it on Monday. He just said, »Come.«

Two hours later, Janko was standing in front of his grandfather's garage, worried and holding a broken jack. Grandpa assessed the damage, turned around and just said, »We'll sort this out.« 

And he started. He welded cracks, repaired, sanded and measured. For two whole days, he worked almost without rest. We waited, and Grandma grumbled that we would miss our holidays, but in her heart she knew it couldn't be otherwise. Grandpa didn't know how to say no to a man who needed him.

So instead of going to the seaside on Sunday, we didn't go until Tuesday evening. But you know what? Nobody was in a bad mood. Janko took his family to the sea. He was happy as a child. And Grandpa... Grandpa just happily lit a cigarette, smiled and said, »Now we can go too.«

Zala Krupljan, 17. 11. 2025