#ARCTIC. #SIBERIA. THIS IS TAIMYR. In 2009, a sculpture appeared between the maternity hospital and the Norilsk employment center – a northern man with a tambourine. The inscription on the tambourine runs: ‘Whisper your wish into my ear’.
The composition became part of the Parallel World project, thanks to which the city’s favorite sculptures of a reindeer on Leninsky prospect, a walrus Andryusha near the swimming pool and Aika polar bear next to the Art Hall cinema appeared in the city.
The inhabitant of the site at 18 Bogdan Hmelnitsky street was nicknamed the Big Ear by the Norilsk people. From the very first day, it attracted the attention of people with cameras and others.
Thanks to the location of the hero, relatives and friends of expectant mothers, patients of the children’s polyclinic No. 1, visitors of the employment center and the editorial office of the city newspaper were next to it every now and then. Many of them have stories to tell Big Ear.
“Several years ago I lost my job”, Alyona Ivanova, a Norilsk resident, told This Is Taimyr. “I had to visit the employment center for six months. I saw that sculpture more than once. At some moment, in despair and fatigue, I approached the sculpture and told it about my hopes. Did I end up finding a job? Yes, I did. Not immediately and not quite a dream job, but this is not a reason not to believe in miracles. It is important to formulate your desires correctly”.
The Big Ear has gained no less popularity among newlyweds. An old friend of many brides and grooms, it probably already knows in advance what happy couples will guess.
Alena and Ivan Semchenkovs got married in 2009. Literally in a matter of days after the composition was installed. Desires to the concrete shaman were whispered by the newlyweds themselves, and witnesses, and guests. Such a chance!
“I don’t remember what exactly we said into the ear of the shaman, but the general meaning was, of course, about a strong family and a long happy life”, Ivan shared his memories. “We can say that the wish came true. Alena and I have been married for 11 years. We have three wonderful sons and a family – this is the main value that we value very much”.
Maybe the Big Ear really helps to grant wishes. As the participants of the our mini-survey unanimously said, the main thing is to believe. In grief or joy, people always want a miracle.
In the previous articles of the Truths and Myths section, read about whether Vysotsky was in Norilsk, why they kept bees in the northern greenhouses and why the Norilsk people raised chickens in bathrooms.
Text: Yulia Gubeladze, Photo: archives of Norilsk residents and open sources
