Memories of the CYM Winter Tabir 2023 – Український Дух

In the picturesque Blue Mountains, surrounded by the beautiful Australian bush, CYM Sydney members and guest had a great opportunity from the 7^th to 10^th of July.  This was being part of our winter camp “Український Дух (Ukrainian Spirit) with the slogan ‘Today a CYMivist – Tomorrow a fighter’. Eager Yunatstvo and their parents arrived in Katoomba expecting a great time, with no disappointment. The camp had been organised to the highest of standards.

The cold, crystal-clear air of the mountains greeted Sydneysiders and embraced them with its windy wings. But Yunatsto did not have time to feel the cold, because seeing their friends was extremely warming. After settling into their designated rooms, chatting with their friends and having a delicious snack, the official opening of the camp took place. Even the cold wind did not frighten some of our younger CYMivtsi, who refused to dress warmly so as not to hide their CYM uniform. For this, all those present received a winter CYM beanie as a gift. Later, everyone went on their first excursion – a night walk in search of nocturnal animals. For some children, such an event was the first in their lives. It was dark, cold, and quiet all around, with only a myriad of stars, which you cannot see in such large numbers in Sydney. Children happily walked in search of curiosities and shared their discoveries. After returning, no one hurried to hide indoors, but played outside under the moonlight.

The next day, everyone was preparing for a hike through the Blue Mountains. Traditionally, this event was for our Starshe Yunatstvo, but this year we decided to test the endurance of our Molodshe Yunatstvo and CYMennytia, who did not disappoint us at all. They made this trip for the first time and deservedly carried the name of Yunatstvo along the heights of the Australian mountains. The excursion was extremely interesting, intertwined with exciting stories, new discoveries, children’s laughter and joy. The picturesque nature of the mountains and the wonderful weather contributed to the good mood of all those present.

After returning, the children began to create a camouflage net for Ukrainian soldiers. There was quite a lot of work and parents were expected to help finish it. But we underestimated our Yunatstvo, who finished this task very quickly.

While creating an interesting program for children, the organizers could not forget their parents. In the evening, parents had the opportunity to compete for the best preparation of mulled wine. In a short time, three teams cut, mixed, cooked, tasted, decorated and of course, joked. The audience and the jury had the great pleasure of watching all the action and waiting for the final result – tasting and determining the winners. The evening was full of fun and joy.

The third day of the camp started with morning sports. The vyhovnnyky have developed a very interesting program for children, where they could try their hand at various sports. It is not known whether Yunatstvo were so fiercely zealous, or whether the cold air of the mountains drove them so hard, but everyone was pleasantly tired and warm.

The children then started their ‘delicious’ activity; making scones, cakes and jam. Work was bubbling in the hall, where Yunatstvo tireless sifted, measured, kneaded, moulded, twisted, baked and cooked. What fascinating smells were floating around! Neither children nor adults could wait for a taste. The older youth skilfully decorated the tables with snow-white tablecloths, decorations and, of course, those delicious goodies. You know, a king would not be ashamed to be invited to such a celebration. And all the children prepared nice jars of jam to take home.

Afterwards, all of  the tabir had the opportunity to participate in a Moleben, to offer their sincere prayers for Ukraine and our indomitable Hero-defenders.

The day ended with a traditional CYM Vatra. I will not be wrong when I say that everyone, without exception, was waiting for the Vatra. After all, it is then that we have a wonderful opportunity to observe our talented children and parents. What wasn’t there! All the performances were extremely interesting. They carefully prepared for them, studied words, and selected costumes. Ukrainian humour was heard from everywhere and native songs lifted the mood.

I especially want to mention the performance of the parent’s team. If you haven’t been to any CYM Sydney Tabir and didn’t have the opportunity to see their skills, you’ve missed a lot! You could safely put them on any stage in Sydney and not get lost. Every time the children ask them “Well, how do you manage to find such interesting performances and present them so professionally?”, the child’s mouth, as they say this, speaks the truth.

It was very cold that evening, windy, even a snowflake flew by. But the flames of the fire warmed us, whilst our hearts were full of love for our language, culture, traditions, songs and pride to be a part of the CYM family.

When the tired but happy children went to sleep, the parents had the opportunity to attend a master class on making preserves led by our charming Podruha Lilia Matiouk. As with our other tabir goodies, we could take them home to treat our relatives or friends.

On the last day, it time to say goodbye and start going home. But the Komanda again surprised us. On the way home, we had another excursion planned at the Valley Heights Rail Museum. Everyone liked and enjoyed the interesting and informative exhibits.

The camp is over, but the warm memories of it will warm all its participants.

We give a sincere thank you to Druh Justin Senko and the entire Uprava for their excellent work in organising the winter camp, a heartfelt thank you to all vyhovnnyky for a well-planned and implemented program, and a special thanks to our master chef, Podruha Lilia Matiuk and her entire team of assistants, for their hard work and all the goodies they treated us with.

Thank you to all the Dryzynnyky and Yunatstvo for their hard work in conducting a successful tabir. Thank you to all the parents who brought their children and helped in every way, whether it was in the kitchen, on the hike, or at the counter. Thank you to everyone who put in the effort to make this a great and successful event. The CYM family has worthy followers and gladly welcomes new friends. See you at the summer camp!

Hartuis!

Tabir Video For Your Enjoyment – https://youtu.be/haRWH3Jmhr8