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I went to a Polish elementary school in Podgorze, it wasn’t called an elementary school but the Queen Kinga Common School, on Jozefinska Street. I went to a public school, but my brother Jehuda went to a Protestant school, because there were small classes there – 15 people. That was a private school, whereas in a state school Father was always worried that someone might knock him over – he was an invalid. He was a cripple. Yes, Jews were taken in that school, there was no problem. That school was on Grodzka Street [founded 1826; closed down in November 1939]; to this day there is still a Protestant congregation there.
I remember 3 teachers from elementary school. Mrs. Tarnowska was our class teacher. Mrs. Jarosz taught math – in the first years of school I was very good at mathematics. Miss Swierzowna probably taught Polish, or history. Polish was my favorite subject. I liked history too, but Polish most of all. I read a lot altogether. Devoured books. Because there weren’t enough Jewish girls, all the Jewish girls in Podgorze had religious instruction together. I don’t remember which school in Podgorze it was in, but not ours. Our teacher was called Jonas. To me back then, he seemed like an elderly man, but he certainly wasn’t old. I worked just hard enough in religious instruction to get by.
My best friend was Renia Seelerfreund. She only joined us in 2nd grade, because they’d moved from somewhere, I don’t know where. And they came to live in Podgorze, opposite us, on Krakusa Street. And Renia went to the same school and the same class as me. Mrs. Tarnowska put us together and somehow we just got along. She was a steady type, while I was a wild thing. I sat with Renia from 2nd grade right up to my high school finals.
There were lots of Jewish girls in my class. There were 3 rows of double desks. One row were all Jewish girls. I sat in the middle row, at the back desk, because I was tall. The teachers always said that the Jewish girls only sat separately because we didn’t go to school on Saturdays. A strange kind of explanation? Well, not really, it was a very decent explanation, that it wasn’t about segregation, but just because, so that there weren’t empty places on Saturday, so that one row wasn’t used. It was clear who’s at school today and who isn’t.
Because we didn’t go to school on Saturdays, of course, though school was open. So I had this friend in Podgorze – her surname was Harnikowna – and I would go round to her house on Sunday mornings to find out what the homework was, so I could be prepared at school on Monday. And all the girls who hadn’t been at school on Saturday had to be prepared for Monday. There was no anti-Semitism at elementary school – I hardly even knew the word. On the part of the teachers decency, on the part of my classmates – absolutely none at all. We got along very well.
I remember 3 teachers from elementary school. Mrs. Tarnowska was our class teacher. Mrs. Jarosz taught math – in the first years of school I was very good at mathematics. Miss Swierzowna probably taught Polish, or history. Polish was my favorite subject. I liked history too, but Polish most of all. I read a lot altogether. Devoured books. Because there weren’t enough Jewish girls, all the Jewish girls in Podgorze had religious instruction together. I don’t remember which school in Podgorze it was in, but not ours. Our teacher was called Jonas. To me back then, he seemed like an elderly man, but he certainly wasn’t old. I worked just hard enough in religious instruction to get by.
My best friend was Renia Seelerfreund. She only joined us in 2nd grade, because they’d moved from somewhere, I don’t know where. And they came to live in Podgorze, opposite us, on Krakusa Street. And Renia went to the same school and the same class as me. Mrs. Tarnowska put us together and somehow we just got along. She was a steady type, while I was a wild thing. I sat with Renia from 2nd grade right up to my high school finals.
There were lots of Jewish girls in my class. There were 3 rows of double desks. One row were all Jewish girls. I sat in the middle row, at the back desk, because I was tall. The teachers always said that the Jewish girls only sat separately because we didn’t go to school on Saturdays. A strange kind of explanation? Well, not really, it was a very decent explanation, that it wasn’t about segregation, but just because, so that there weren’t empty places on Saturday, so that one row wasn’t used. It was clear who’s at school today and who isn’t.
Because we didn’t go to school on Saturdays, of course, though school was open. So I had this friend in Podgorze – her surname was Harnikowna – and I would go round to her house on Sunday mornings to find out what the homework was, so I could be prepared at school on Monday. And all the girls who hadn’t been at school on Saturday had to be prepared for Monday. There was no anti-Semitism at elementary school – I hardly even knew the word. On the part of the teachers decency, on the part of my classmates – absolutely none at all. We got along very well.
Period
Interview
Emilia Leibel
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