Telli Menüü

Good for the back, spirit and memory bank

juuni 3, 2012 Estonian Life No. 22 2012

Working to help keep the Kotkajärve campsites clean, buildings in good shape and natural environment healthy and happy yields many good personal gains as well, including the acquisition of technical, social and language skills. Over 70 parents, leaders and cottage owners gathered at Kotkajärve for a work weekend May 26 and 27. In addition to battling sääsed (mosquitos) and black flies, which belong to a family of bugs known as kihulased in Estonia, it was possible to kids to learn quite a lot from their elders.

Father-son tandems were hard at work putting new metal roofing and siding on outhouses, female cub leaders led expeditions to try to tame the wilds of Uudismaa on the shores of Kotkajärve and a myriad of tool names could be learned in Estonian where a new kanuugaraaž was being built in Lembitu küla (village). What a great opportunity to learn cool concepts such as valmis/ehitatud tala (manufactured joist), suruõhu naelapüss / -püstol (compressor-powered nail gun), ketas/saag (circular saw) and aku/trell (cordless drill).
Andres Jeeger on the left and Alrek Meipoom represent the continuum of generations who have worked to build and maintain Kotkajärve over the last 59 years. Alrek's two sons are continuing in the steps of their grandfather Kennet and great-grandfather Egon Meipoom. Their original family cottage is just steps from where this beehive of work was going on. Andres' father Peter Jeeger was one of the men in charge of said "mesilaspere" (bee family). Photo: Riina Kindlam


Great to know there are some funky nerds out there: Mikk Jõgi, who was working at Kotkajärve with two of his three kids was

proud to share his Estonian technical-speak knowledge and admitted to consulting his Estonian-English/English-Estonian technical

dictionary often. He bought the useful book on one of his trips to Eesti.

Kotkajärve is now much closer to being ready to host its united guide and scout summer camp and Metsaülikool (Forest

University) seminar. The next chance to lüüa käed külge (pitch in or get hands-on) in the more bugless forest is in the fall. In the meantime, here's to hoping for lots of vihm (rain) and a lifting of the lõkke/keeld (forest fire ban) in the near future.

Riina Kindlam

Photo gallery – Photos by Riina Kindlam
Jaga

Loe edasi