Христос Воскресе !

С днем рождения, Макс ! Many Happy Returns of the Day ! La mulți ani ! (по-румынски) Берегите себя.

Привет, Макс. Я хочу поздравить тебя за 80 выпусков твоего подкаста. Вот мои любимые из них: 009 Бегетарианство, история, быть или не быть; 044 Город Орлов; 061 Существует ли интуиция? ; 049 и 045 (о мыслях Андрея Курпатово про наш мозг); 077 История России; 064 “Максим и Москва” (ето мое название…) и т.д. Спасибо за все ! Ирина

Hello, Max, I fully understand your “split” existence you live now. Your sincere confessions reminded me of a nice website : Holstee.com. Here is a link to their “Holstee Manifesto” (aka “This is Your Life”) https://www.holstee.com/pages/manifesto. You can find there a miniature poster of this manifesto (you can copy the image, if you like the text…), as well as its “history” (how it came into being).
Enjoy it !

Your podcasts are unique among any other language learning podcasts or videos ! They are simply THE BEST. Don’t change anything in their format, content or duration. They are perfect. Every one of them is like a concentrated bit of Max, one can feel your splendid intellect, dedication and goodwill, and this is like a miraculous balm in the daily frenzy of our lives. Большое спасибо, Макс !

You know, Max, when something becomes an imposition, a compulsory activity, when your daily “job” makes it necessary to sit in front of a computer and to work for long hours, when требовать(ся) and all its synonyms are our main inescapable obligations… and one feels it’s too much a burden for one’s life, we should try to make a change, to find, I don’t know, maybe something new, another way to look at things. I understand perfectly what you feel, I spend my working day in front of my laptop, I’m a writer and a literary translator, and I get so tired and so discouraged sometimes… Your thoughts are so familiar to me, I feel just like you – the need to go out, to be in the outside world, although after a day of “breaking free”, I need to come back, to my writings, to my inner indoors life, yes, to my laptop (before, it was my typewriter). Maybe, a kind of “middle way of moderation” would be a possible solution to my dilemma. I like your way of thinking, I like the way you explain things. Keep up the good work, don’t get discouraged, we all love and admire you !

Я вам рекомендую читать эту книгу ещё раз, но медленно…, taking your time; do not rush through it, do not expect to discover any удобная мотивация for your life, просто прочитать её. You’ll find ultimately the meaning of Dmitri’s final transfiguration, the sense of Ivan’s satanic visions, the beauty of Alyosha’s hopeful view on life. The depth of Father Zosima’s мудрость. It’s all there, just unveil it. And no need to get depressed, this is our life, our naked life, we are meant to live with it. Speaking of motivation, the very reason I decided to learn Russian was this desire to be able to read and understand Russian literature, culture.
Спасибо за всё ! You are a wonderful person, Max !