To Russia With Love.

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I know, I know, another doll post, but a friend of mine and I were discussing Russia this morning and our joint desire to visit, and that led me to think about my Russian nesting doll (or matryoshka) collection I had when I was young. (I had a lot of odd collections, including, but not limited to: rocks, perfume bottles, shells, doll house furniture, tea cups and vintage hats).
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I'm also happy to discover that you can buy kits and make them yourself. There are a lot of creative ways to put your own stamp on them.

↑ These make me laugh.
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↑ These make me smile.
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They can be so colorful and jolly. They are even beautiful when they are old. ↑

And with that, I'll sign off with another nod to Poetry Month and one of my favorite Russian poets.
The souls of those I love are on high stars. Anna Akhmatova

The souls of those I love are on high stars.
How good that there’s no-one left to lose
and one can weep. All created in order
to sing songs, this air of Tsarskoye Selo’s.

The river bank’s silver willow
touches the bright September stream.
Rising from the past, my shadow
is running in silence to meet me.

So many lyres hung on branches here,
but it seems there’s room for mine too.
And this shower, sun-drenched, rare,
brings me consolation, good news.


Listening to White Rabbits.