Romanian philosopher Mircea Eliade points out in the "Sacredness of Nature and Cosmic Religion," that "nature is never only 'natural'; it is always fraught with a religious value. For homo religiosus the supernatural shines through the natural, and nature always expresses something that transcends it. The mystery of the inexhaustible appearance of life is bound up with the rhythmical renewal of the cosmos and a deeper meaning emerges from the rhythm of vegetation - ideas of regeneration, of eternal youth, of health, of immortality. In Romania, Christian Orthodox traditions coexist with pre-Christian beliefs and customs. In Vrancea, there is the pagan custom of Chiparusul, a funeral dance unique in Europe, where masked men symbolising the ancestors, perform a ritual meant to ease the passing of the deceased one. The custom dates back to Thracians who considered death as a joyful rebirth, a sacramental union with nature. The theme of immortality is being found in folk tales and ballads.“Youth Without Age and Life Without Death” is the tale of a young prince on a quest for eternal life. When he finally reaches the paradisiac land of immortality, driven by nostalgia, he cannot help but go to a place which was forbidden to him, a transgression which will finally lead to him being found by his death, who was waiting for him all this time. The tale is about the human condition and an warning against pursuing the dream of eternal bliss. Similarly, the ballad of ‘The ewe lamb’ describes the story of a young shepherd, and of an enchanted ewe lamb which can talk, informing its master about an imminent plot to kill him. The shepherd reveals to the ewe lamb his last wishes, envisioning his death as a sacred union of man and nature. According to Eliade, recounting the myths allows us to detach ourselves from profane time and re-enter the sacred time. Past and present become integrated; profane time is subordinated and sacred, eternal time emerges. I made this project during several visits to my home country, around the time my grandmother passed away. The images accommodate the promise of the Paradise, exploring the boundary between the real and imaginary, while projecting a space where mythology, customs and rituals merge towards a sense of continuity and a connection with the motherland across generations.