39Years sometimes come and go in which nothing much occurs to mark the time. No births, deaths, no Acts of God which would make one note the date. Just the same routine with small, subtle changes. These insignificant years gradually recede in one’s memory until they are lost, leaving only the important events to connect the dots of one’s life. But time doesn’t stand still. Change occurs. One is constantly being shaped by minor events, slowly, slowly, like water dripping on a piece of stone. That was the hope of both Nick and Helen, as they tried to fashion Zoitsa into their American ideal. Maria Christina, on the other hand, was determined to instil in her niece the traditional Vlach values, some quite at odds with those of Nick and Helen.
For the next few years nothing noteworthy occurre
