– Diana, please tell us your story in America.
This May marks 4 years since my family and I have moved to Austin. Like many other families, the reason for our move was a job opportunity for one of the parents. Before that, we had lived in Washington DC. The news that we would need to move took me by surprise. We had lived there for eight and a half years of our life and had gotten very accustomed to living there because everything was familiar to us there, and we had many friends, Russian gardens, shops, and two amazing Russian churches. Having to start all over again was undoubtedly frightening. We didn’t know anyone in the city we were moving to, and didn’t know how our lives would be different there. Also, my opinions about Texas at that time were only based on stereotypes. You know, the same way foreigners generally only know stereotypes about Russia – it’s cold, everyone drinks vodka, and bears walk the streets, so at the time I thought that Texas would be a hot desert, full of cacti, cows, and cowboys. However, our first visit to Austin immediately changed my mind. Hurray, I was wrong! To me, Austin seemed very green and full of rivers and lakes. Our five-day visit to the city helped me change my views and to prepare for our move with a light heart.
– How do you feel about Austin? What do you like about this city?
Austin is a stunning city, and it’s not just the infrastructure and location that makes it so, but also its people. I was very lucky to meet a lot of wonderful people who helped me feel at home. Because I had a young child, one of my priorities was to find Russian-speaking friends. This is how we found a Russian school. This was a great find, since I had not even imagined that there would be so many fellow Russian-speakers here. There are chats and groups for moms to schedule walks together, as well as for socializing and even bachelorette parties. Since Austin, with its surroundings, spreads over a fairly large area, there are even divisions into groups of the north and south, but people still drive to the other part of the city to see their friends. The Austin Russian school deserves, in my opinion, special attention. This is an amazing team of like-minded people, whose interests include the preservation of the Russian language in our children, who, alas, prefer to communicate more in English. It offers diverse classes, parties and performances, as well as classes for adults. I have watched how the school has grown in the 4 years that we have gone to it. I am very thankful to the volunteer organizers for their time, work, and desire to preserve Russian traditions and culture. I also really like their adult theater studio. They rehearse a lot, compose, and sew costumes to give the audience a great performance. I don’t think the kids understand everything, but the adult audience loves it.
Returning to the topic of Austin, it was very important for me personally to know if there was a Russian Orthodox Church here. And fortunately for me, there is. It may not be as big as the temples in Washington, but it is very genuine and special. To be honest, I didn’t even find it right away and thought I had entered the wrong address. Only a small gilded dome with a cross on the apartment building and a wooden cross in front of the entrance indicated that the address was correct. In America, it is very normal for churches to be in residential areas, but it was hard to tell it was a church at first. But when I went inside, I felt myself in the house of the Lord. The parish has only one priest, Hieromonk Aidan. He conducts services in both English and Russian. The church did not have the high vaults and spaciousness I was used to after living in Washington and Russia, but it felt very comfortable. A smaller church makes it easier to participate in the service instead of standing at a distance and watching. There is an expression “The temple is not in the logs, but in the ribs.” Likewise, the Russian Church in Austin does not yet have a large church, but the people in it are wonderful. We were welcomed very kindly into their big, friendly family. I am happy to witness the arrival of new parishioners moving from other states and countries, the church is growing and we very much hope that in the future we will also have a temple with domes and vaults to accommodate all Orthodox Christians. An important part of the church is the upholding of our traditions and holidays, religious and not only. Theatrical performances for children for Christmas, concerts dedicated to Victory Day, Easter picnics with music and children’s games, and even Pushkin’s Readings were repeatedly staged. Again, all this is thanks to incredible people who want to preserve and share our traditions abroad.
– Please tell us about your profession.
I work in the beauty industry, or rather, the beauty and health industry. After all, healthy skin is beautiful. My main priority is to teach you how to properly care for your skin at home because we touch our face two or even more times a day, and we see a beautician once a month or less. As wonderful as procedures are, home care is fundamental. In this case, it is simpler to compare a beautician with a personal trainer. You tell them about your goals and they draw up a training plan for you. Meet with them in a month and you will see – if you followed their recommendations, then the results will be good, and if you did not, then the results would not be as good. I became a cosmetologist in America. I am a pediatrician by education, graduated from the St. Petersburg Pediatric Medical Academy (now the University), completed an internship and worked a little as a district pediatrician in a children’s clinic. While completing my studies at the medical school, I took courses in children’s and adult massage and also practiced my skills and knowledge on children and adults. I believe that a good massage is an important component of health, so last year I completed massage courses in the States and received a license. It helped me take a holistic approach: face and body. The mini spa day option was in demand among my clients, so we started with a body massage and continued with a facial with a sculptural facial massage. We plan to do a wellness massage not only for adults but also for children. Before Covid-19, I worked as a beautician at Lake Austin Spa Resort and at the same time opened my own small beauty parlor, which I treated as a hobby, just to help friends and acquaintances. After a couple of years, thanks to word of mouth, the circle of friends has grown significantly. I get great pleasure from my work and making clients happy is my goal. Through my profession, I have met many amazing people, both clients and colleagues in the beauty industry. All are very talented, motivated, and love their work, and every last one deserves special recognition. During the quarantine period (from which I have not yet completely quit), I continued distance learning in my field. I miss my job and hope to return to it soon.
Contact information:
Diana Tyurina
Email: dianatyurina@hotmail.com
Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/diana.tyurina.1
Interviewer: Olga Kravchenko
Editor: Olga Falkowski
Publisher: Russian Cultural Center