One of my readers commented recently on a throwaway remark of mine- fear of war- and I began to think about it more deeply. And this fear is indeed always at the back of my mind, as is my horror of being in prison. So I began to try and think why these two things are […]Read Post ›
I don’t know who took this photo, but it is one of my favourite ones of my father. He stayed in Italy after the war, and started attending Rome University , but soon realised that there would be more opportunities in England for Poles like him, who had been deported to Siberia, then managed to […]Read Post ›
St Augustine’s Priory. Form III. The first year of senior school. It would be year 7 these days. I had just arrived, and was settling in to the boarding system, just about, but the classroom was another kettle of fish. Luckily I didn’t find any of the work at all difficult (apart form PE and […]Read Post ›
Wszystkiego najlepszego w dniu imienin wszystkim Krystynom! Happy namesday to all Christines. Unfortunately my mother in law is no longer with us, but I found her collection of identity card photos and chose these to show you how beautiful she was. 13th March 2020 we had just wished her a happy namesday in her care […]Read Post ›
(Footnote to First Night at St Augustine’s) When I went to Saint Augustine’s, it was a weekly boarding school. My father had wanted me to go to a catholic one and he searched high and low for one that was within a reasonable distance of where he lived, and which was cheap. It was a […]Read Post ›
I’m afraid I can’t actually remember it. It must have been September 1959. I was just six. I should have been seven, but somewhere along the line I missed a year. I moved up from Marlborough Infants School, putting Mrs Brock and Mrs Edwards safely behind me. A lot of my friends came with me […]Read Post ›
It was Holocaust Memorial Day last week and my son, a teacher was asked to take the school assembly and reflection the meaning of the day. I am unable to embed the Youtube video of Szpilman actually playing the music referred to, but here is a link https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=n9oQEa-d5rU which may work. If you ever saw […]Read Post ›
As today is the 85th anniversary of the soviet invasion of Poland, I thought I would share with you some of my father’s thoughts on those awful events, before he and his family were arrested and deported to Siberia as enemies of the people. Below is a translation, as far as I could, of my […]Read Post ›
If you live within reach of London it would be lovely to see you here. This commemorative exhibition should be both informative and fascinating. The exhibition is open till 8th August and then from 10th August in POSK in Hammersmith. Warsaw Calling 80th anniversary exhibition commemorating the 1944 Warsaw Uprising, 20 July-8 August 2024 Opening […]Read Post ›
The patron saint of Dubrovnik. On Sunday we went to the church dedicated to him in the old town and it was a very pleasant experience, even though we couldn’t understand everything. The rhythms of spoken Croat, however, are very similar to Polish, so we could follow all that was going on very easily. The […]Read Post ›
Life Through Basia's Eyes 