The book “I Love Life!”, which includes poems by Robert Rozhdestvensky and recollections about him, was published for the 80th anniversary of his birth. Culturologist Elena Balakina compiled the collection. She also wrote the introductory article about the life and work of Rozhdestvensky, and explained the importance of the village of Kosikha and Altai in his life.
He lived most of his life in Moscow, the epicenter of the literary events of the 1960s, in which he played an important role. His first visit to the capital happened in 1950 as he applied to the Literary Institute. However, many of his poems are also devoted to his Small Motherland — a far corner of Altai — Kosikha. His memories of the village are preserved in the following poems: “I was born in the village of Kosikha. In rainy summer. In Altai…” (“Birthdays”); “I thank the village named Kosikha, thank you for your kindness, for the feeling of truth” (“Thanksgiving Day”); “Forests and grass nod their heads, snowfall and heat, the village of Kosikha, Sakhalin and Volga. Live in me…” (“Debts”).
These and other lines, in which the poet recalls his native land, emerge in his book along with the most fundamental questions of life. The poet explores this topic in the poems “Who Are You, Rozhdestvensky?”, “What a Miracle the Man Is!”, “Great and Patriotic Labor…”, “At What Price the Happiness Was Won!” and “Your and My Land…”
The book, which is housed in the museum, ends with a chapter, for which his wife, daughter and mother, the three main women in the poet’s life, wrote short texts. The memories of Rozhdestvensky’s mother, Vera Pavlovna, were published for the first time and were based on a manuscript handed over by Tatyana Rozhdestvenskaya, the wife of his younger brother Ivan.
Elena Balakina, who complied the book, believes that Rozhdestvensky’s poems give an opportunity for the reader to hear smart, strong, beautiful words that can reaffirm a person’s faith in life. The magnificent design of the book also corresponds with the message — it was made by a Barnaul designer Alexander Kalmutsky. The Kosikhinsky District Model Memorial Library was named after the poet. Furthermore, in 2012, the Robert Rozhdestvensky Memorial Museum was opened here.
He lived most of his life in Moscow, the epicenter of the literary events of the 1960s, in which he played an important role. His first visit to the capital happened in 1950 as he applied to the Literary Institute. However, many of his poems are also devoted to his Small Motherland — a far corner of Altai — Kosikha. His memories of the village are preserved in the following poems: “I was born in the village of Kosikha. In rainy summer. In Altai…” (“Birthdays”); “I thank the village named Kosikha, thank you for your kindness, for the feeling of truth” (“Thanksgiving Day”); “Forests and grass nod their heads, snowfall and heat, the village of Kosikha, Sakhalin and Volga. Live in me…” (“Debts”).
These and other lines, in which the poet recalls his native land, emerge in his book along with the most fundamental questions of life. The poet explores this topic in the poems “Who Are You, Rozhdestvensky?”, “What a Miracle the Man Is!”, “Great and Patriotic Labor…”, “At What Price the Happiness Was Won!” and “Your and My Land…”
The book, which is housed in the museum, ends with a chapter, for which his wife, daughter and mother, the three main women in the poet’s life, wrote short texts. The memories of Rozhdestvensky’s mother, Vera Pavlovna, were published for the first time and were based on a manuscript handed over by Tatyana Rozhdestvenskaya, the wife of his younger brother Ivan.
Elena Balakina, who complied the book, believes that Rozhdestvensky’s poems give an opportunity for the reader to hear smart, strong, beautiful words that can reaffirm a person’s faith in life. The magnificent design of the book also corresponds with the message — it was made by a Barnaul designer Alexander Kalmutsky. The Kosikhinsky District Model Memorial Library was named after the poet. Furthermore, in 2012, the Robert Rozhdestvensky Memorial Museum was opened here.
