RAILWAY PERSONNEL, OUTSIDE... THE RAILWAYS

Railway personnel. Or the rail employees. No matter how we would call them, we have to admit that they, the people who work within the Railways, represent a more particular, more special category. And not only due to their work that is developed in special conditions. And not due to the fact that they provide the operation of an extremely important system for the country, as well as our link with the entire world. Or due to the fact that, at a given moment, in the history, they have gained their fame as the second army of the country…
All these aspects have lingered somehow cold, severe, even tough shades to the "portrait" of the railway employee in the vision of common people. There are only a few who know how he really is. There are only a few who could presume his sensitivity, his artistic creativity, his thrust for knowledge, his intellectual opening, his aspiration towards new horizons and all those valences that make him the very special person that we were talking about.

Incursion in the hobby land

The railway personnel have already led a rich cultural life. During the time, they have created various clubs, associates and all kinds of unions, in order to cultivate the hobbies and simply to feel good and to relax together.
Presently, the most famous cultural association belonging to the railway personnel is the Intellectual Artistic Union of the Romanian Railway Personnel (UAIFR), according to its status, a non-governmental body, non-political and non-profit. It has the headquarters in Brasov, also being registered at the Law Court there. It was founded in 1994, when it brought together a series of associations of the Romanian Railways workers dedicated to the artistic activities, music, folklore, bridge, photo-film, numismatics, radio-amateurs, philately, but also for fishing and hunting. All these activities were legalized, on their turn, at the Law Court of the towns where they are developing their activity in, namely: Braila, Galati, Iasi, Brasov (three associations), Bucharest and Cluj. In every of these clubs are enlisted several railway employees animated by the same passions, either it is about photography, Romanian people art or…the strange language Esperanto.
The union has a vast activity, exceeding the national frame. The natural need of the railway employees to communicate with similar hobby adepts in other countries is fulfilled by the UAIFR. The union is affiliated to the International Federation of the Artistic and Intellectual Railway Employees Company (FISAIC), having the headquarters in Paris, where there are activating next to similar other unions from 23 countries. FISAIC has stipulated in the "agenda" at least ten actions annually that are developed in collaboration with its members. There are also added the reunions organized internally by certain national associations, where there are invited other members of the federation.
The current year represents a special one for the railway employees on all the meridians that are members of this federation because there are celebrating 50 years since the foundation of FISAIC. On this occasion, on September, in Strasbourg, there will be organized jubelee manifestations being invited delegates from all affiliated associations.
Romanian association (namely, UAIFR) has as honoring president Mr. Ion Selaru, state secretary on railway problems within MLPTL, and the vice-president is Mr. Stefan Mihai.

A short halt among the Esperanto Speaker

The last year we had the occasion to meet some of the members of this union - namely, the one that have this passion for art - pursuant to an invitation to take part in a painting exhibition organized under the aegis of UAIFR. We have already written about it in the Railway Journal.
The current year we have met other railway employees "reunited" in the spirit of a hobby - the Esperanto speakers. We had the pleasure to take part in a meeting of the Association of the Railway Esperanto Speakers in Romania. There was a unique experience. And also exciting. On this occasion, something that represented a mystery for me up to now in point of this…universal language was revealed: I have found out a lot of interesting things about Esperanto, about the history of its turning up and, not at last, about Esperanto speakers.
Within the respective meeting, Mr. Marian Constantinescu, Esperanto language teacher, made a short, but extremely interesting incursion in the history of this special way of expressing. I found out that the Polonaise physician Ludovic Zanehov with the purpose to serve as international communication "instrument" between people has created it, for 110 years ago.
Living in a region where from time to time the rulers were keep changing and, in the same time the languages, dr. Zanehov thought that it would be better if there was a method of communication that would total all the languages of circulation existing at the time (French, English, Spanish, Portuguese, Latin and German). Thus, he started to form bringing together the words that have the roots in each of the respective languages. The grammar was highly simplified, having just a few rules, but very clear. With regard to the selection of the words, the Polonaise doctor approached the following method: he put together the terms that had the same meaning in all the languages that he has studied and he picked the most known. In order to better understand what I am trying to say, here is an example: table (in English) = tavola (in Italian) = tabula (in Latin) = table (in French), in Esperanto is tabl.
A unique way to build a language, we have to admit. The activity of the creator has totaled, naturally, many years of thorough study. He experienced a hard working, meticulous, laborious period of time. As it was expected - because a "universal" language has to be imposed through political and economical force, and no way through …passion and good will -, the utopian attempt of the Polonaise doctor had no favorable outcome.
However, Esperanto language was not completely forgotten under the dust of the history. Along the time, many passionate of linguistic on all over the globe, people belonging to different worlds, with different professional activities, have learnt Esperanto and have permanently improved themselves. A statistics show that only in China there are presently almost 20 million persons passionate of this language.
Also, in our country there are several Esperanto passionate, who have also created a national association, have published several books, and even the poem "Luceafarul" (the Evening Star) written by Mihai Eminescu has been translated in this language. In order to edify yourself, dear readers, we have thought that it would be interesting to present to you the first stanza of this masterpiece created by Eminescu as it sounds in Esperanto:
La Veesperstel'
"Cu estis iam, trans la mar'.
Cu ne, en temp' fabela.
El fama, rega parencar'
Knabinorave bela."
("Once upon a time,/ As poets sing,/ High tales with fancy laden,/ Born of a noble king,/ There lived a wondrous maiden.").
With regard to the Romanian Association of Esperanto we have to remind that it was founded in year 1990 and has almost one thousand Romanian passionate persons, among whom many railway employees. They are reunited, on their turn, in the above-mentioned Association of the Railway Esperanto Speakers in Romania, whose president is Mrs. Rodica Todor.
The international collaborations between the Esperanto speakers are thorough: there are organized various events and periodical meetings, there are performed permanent work exchanges and so on, because there are, of course, many interesting things to share.
Thus, at the beginning of the current year, during February 16-23, there has been developed in Predeal the 43rd edition of the International Week of Skiing of the Railway Esperanto Speakers, attended by almost 90 Romanian railway employees and foreign guests. The snow fallen has offered to the participants the occasion to ski a little on the paths of Predeal, but also to make a few trips by skies. They have also take advantage of this occasion in order to visit the mountain resorts in the proximity, as well as the sights in the area (Peles and Bran castles, Babele and Brasov). As it was normal, the reunion was concluded with the presentation of the future plans: the next meeting is scheduled to take place in Plovdiv (Bulgaria), on July, the current year, under the aegis of IFEF (European Forum of the Railway Esperanto Speakers).
***

Thus, we have met another face - less visible, and very profound - of the personality of the railway workers. We have found out how many things they can make out of passion.
Even if their common hobby is an activity for idealists, as the railway Esperanto speakers have admitted themselves, it still occasioned certain meetings and passionate discussions and the joy to spend pleasant moments beside their fellow human beings who share the same ideals and…speak the same language.

Ileana Statie