Kavadarci marked 82 years since the liberation of the town. Laying fresh flowers at the monument to the fallen fighters, mayor Mitko Jančev and representatives of the institutions paid tribute to those whose courage and sacrifice helped the town live to see freedom.

"Freedom is our honour, but also our obligation," was Jančev's message for 7 September - to respect the past and to carry on with dedicated work for the development and future of Kavadarci.

7 September is one of the most significant dates in the town's recent history, and in Kavadarci it is marked every year with the same protocol: flowers, a speech, a reminder of the legacy left by the generations who gave their lives for freedom.

The ritual matters and nobody serious is going to dispute it. What is worth noticing is that this year's commemoration falls in the same week the whole state was marking 35 years of independence with a month-long caravan through 11 towns. The local 7 September in Kavadarci, with flowers at a monument, cost roughly what flowers cost.

That is not a remark about the expense, but about the scale. Local history remembers on its own, quietly, with a few bouquets and one speech. State history remembers with a stage, lights and billboards. The difference is not which date matters more, but who is meant to be watching the remembering.