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Being a child in Communist Bulgaria

Аз съм от България,родена през 1971г.и голяма част от съзнателния си живот съм изживяла в така наречения комунистически строй.Родителите ми бяха членове на комунистическата партия и като такива имаха своите превилегии,като например да си изберат марката на колата(лада или москвич) и да бъдат поставени в началото на списъка за чакащи,да подават молба за почивка с предимство и други т.н. облаги.А моите мечти като дете се свеждаха до шоколадово яйце и дъвки с картинка то "Кореком"(магазин за западни стоки)и в очакване на Нова Година,когато добрия дядо Мраз ще донесе банани и портокали на послушните деца,за които родителите ми чакаха на километрични опашки.Но мога да кажа,че имах едно спокойно и щастливо детство.Всичко беше някак много добре организирано и имаше дисциплина.Възпитаваха ни да изпитваме респект към родителе,учители,възрастни хора.Като деца живеехме в приказката на комунистическия строй и с гордост носихме червените си връзки(символ на социалистическата младеж)Живеехме добре от гледната точка на дете,но родителите ми биха казали друго.Липса на информация за живота на запад или изкривена такава ,ограничаване в пътуванията.Дезинформацията води до невежество и ние бяхме щастливи в своето невежество.

[I was born in 1971 in Bulgaria and spent a large part of my conscious life living under the communist system. My parents were members of the Communist Party and as such, they had certain privileges- for example they had a choice about the type of car they wanted to drive (either a Lada or a Moskvitch), they were put among the first on the waiting list for those who wanted to sign up to go on a holiday as well as other advantages. My own dreams and wishes were as small as getting a chocolate egg or a chewing gum with a picture from "Corecom" (a shop for Western goods which only a few could afford) for Christmas, when "Dyado Mraz" ("Grandfather Frost", which is how we called Santa Claus back then) was going to come and bring all good kids delicious bananas and oranges (for which my parents had to queue for hours in order to provide for us). I can say, however, that I had a calm and a happy childhood. Everything was somehow well organised and there was discipline and order everywhere. We were taught to treat our parents, teachers and the elderly people with respect. As kids, we lived in the fairy tale called Communism and we wore our obligatory school uniforms and red/blue neckerchiefs- symbol of the socialist youth, with pride. We lived a happy life from the point of view of a child, although my parents would probably disagree. The absence of information or at least accurate information about the West and the inability to travel resulted in some kind of ignorance. This ignorance and perception that someone else is taking good care of your well-being led to a happy and carefree life, at least for the children who had no idea about the struggles of their parents.]

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Created: 4 Jul 2019, 1:17 p.m.

Nationality: Bulgarian