Irish people find it extremely difficult to pronounce my name. Verina Borissova.
In the workshops we did numerous exercises to practice our names. One of the first introductory tasks we were asked to do was to present our names in a visual or interactive way so that they would be remembered by the others in the group.
For example, Verina means faith. “In vino veritas.” I am named after the patron saint of the city I was born in. I was born in Sofia, the capital of Bulgaria. Saint Sofia had three daughters – Faith, Hope and Love. I am one of her daughters. In Sofia we celebrate with a lot of outdoor events on St. Sofia’s day, the 17th of September. The weather is always beautiful. Reliable.
I grew up in socialist Bulgaria, in a small house with a big garden. There were five huge cherry trees in our garden and a tunnel of lime trees on the street. The air was filled with the sweetest fragrance in June. Every time I go back, there are new changes, more and more buildings taking space from nature.