A Novel by Richard and Elizabeth Bieniawski

 

 

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Adventures in Time Travel

ReRe--LivingLiving

the Family Treethe Family Tree

OrOr

How a 9-yr old met his dad, grandfather and his great grandfather when all were the same age of the same age!

Richard and Elizabeth Bieniawski

www.bieniawski.com August 2015

 

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Re-Living the Family Tree is a work of fiction. Names, characters, places and incidents are the products of the authors’ imagination and personal experience. Any resemblance to actual

events, locales or persons, living or dead, is entirely coincidental.  

Copyright ©2015

by Renaissance Living Publications

Library of Congress Control Number: 2015912903

ISBN: 978-1-4951-7258-8

 

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About this Book

Re-Living the Family Tree is the fantastical story of a 9-year old boy who wins a TV contest for the best use of a time machine. Ricky’s idea is to visit his grandfather and great-grandfather when they, too, were just nine years old, to learn how life was different in other centuries, countries and continents. Ricky and his sister Alicja set out on a series of time travel adventures.

First they meet their Grandpapá in 1946 in Poland, just after the Second World War, living in primitive conditions. Ricky and Alicja invite their grandfather to travel even further back in time with them to meet their great grandfather, in the Kingdom of Galicja, a Polish part of the Austrian Empire in 1915. There they learn how their great grandfather, when just 9-years old, saved his family from starvation during the First World War!

Growing tired of the boys, Alicja demands they next visit their grandmother Elizabeth in Scotland. They have adventures there, too,

 

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even though there are no televisions, telephones, or computer games. In the end, Ricky and Alicja visit their father as a young boy and have a deeper sense of gratitude for everything they have, and everything their ancestors went through, making it possible for them to secure their future in America.

The authors were inspired to write

Re-Living the Family Tree after researching their own roots for our nine grandchildren. It was a thrilling journey that took us back in time hundreds of years, across three continents! We were surprised there aren’t more books about discovering and living one’s roots, especially since every family has a history; and finding one’s roots is now easier than ever, thanks to a number of websites available. Plus, most people (children, parents, and grandparents) like exploring their past as a way to help them better understand themselves.

We wish you enchanting reading!

 

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SEVEN MAGIC JOURNEYS

Prologue: The Race of time-travel machines

Ricky plans his journey into the past

1946 Poland: Grandpapa here we come!

1915 Galicja… with Great Grandpapa!

1892 Austria: Welcome to 123 years ago!

Back to 1915: 'Good-Bye' Future Ancestors

1946 Scotland: Two Elizabeths - One cold city

1980 Pennsylvania: Discovering our Dad’s dream

Magic in the air: Back home at last!

Epilogue: What happened to our heroes when they grew up

 

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PROLOGUE

The Race of Time -Travel Machines

It was a race of the time machines. Which one would be the fastest, which one the biggest, which one the strongest, which... the best? Here was the Enterprise, with Captain Piccard in charge, its warp speed at Level 10 set for travel between galaxies and between centuries; here was the Time Locomotive, of Back to the Future fame, able to fly Martie and Doc to any specified - past or future - date; here was the gang of The Sliders, including the Professor, ready to dive into their time-warp vortex to take them to an earlier or future generation or even to a parallel universe; here was the Time Warp Trio of Joe, Fred and Sam holding their magic Time Book at the ready

 

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with a rhyming verse selected for the time-traveling mist to swirl them to past and future times; and here were the Genie and Aladdin sitting on the flying carpet, about to select his three wishes and race the other time machines to any place and time. And the Infinity Ring bunch of Dak, Sera and Riq were at the ready as well, followed by Jonah, holding the Elucidator, with Katherine and Chip of The Missing fame. Clearly, time-travel is for real but what were the rules for a time-travel race? Just then the organizer appeared and announced: “the winner will not be a time machine but the person who can put any of these amazing time-devices to the best use. These time-travel wonders are at your disposal and the most imaginative time-travel proposal will be rewarded with a magnificent adventure!"

"You are watching the Interactive Channel. The contest rules and the prizes will be revealed after these important messages from our sponsors.

Stay with us!”

 

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The screen went blank and a small boy in California reached for the remote control to mute the sound. He sat back and thought: “Well, how about it? Maybe I could participate? But what would I use these machines for?”

Just then an idea came to him.

"I know what I'll do!" he said to himself. “I am the first-born American in our family; my dad was born somewhere in Africa, my grandfather in Poland, my granny in Scotland and my great grandfather in Austria! I want to find my family roots! I’ll travel back in time to visit my Grandpapa and my Great-grandpapa when they were kids of my age and check out also what my Dad did as a nine-year old!”

 

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Ricky plans his Magic Journey into the Past

Nine-year-old Ricky was very proud of his bed, which looked like a racing car, complete with its shiny wheels carved and painted on the baseboard. But today, he concentrated on a large world map spread in front of him. He turned to his friend. "This is where we are in California, and this is the place to be, Adam. How about going there?" "No way, José!" exclaimed Adam. "How can we go just on our own? It's too scary!" He shrugged his shoulders. "Also, your mom and dad would never allow it, anyway!" Ricky laughed. "Oh, come on, you chicken. We've played dungeons and dragons and been chased by monsters, what could be so bad about visiting where my dad was born in Africa?"

 

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“Hey, I’m just kidding,” he continued, “actually my dad was born in Africa but grew up in Pennsylvania and by the time he was my age, he and the family had become proud Americans. "How so?” asked Adam looking impressed. Just then Ricky's sister marched in and plopped down next to Ricky. "Go away, Alicja", said Ricky. "We are busy." Alicja waved her hands. "Mom wants you at the front door. A big box arrived for you." Ricky got up and looked at Adam. "That must be the magic kit from the contest people." "What contest?" asked Alicja. "Never mind," replied Ricky. "It's boys' stuff." He went to the front door where a man in a company uniform was handing mom a parcel. "Here are the toys your son was awarded by our TV show," he said. "Your boy has a great imagination, Ma’am. Bye y'all and good luck, kiddo." "Thank you," said mom. “Anything to keep him busy during the summer! Here you are, Ricky. Run along." Back in his room, Ricky opened the

 

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parcel, eagerly watched by Alicja and Adam. "I'm supposed to receive three things,” he said. "A book, a badge and a lamp." “Aladdin's lamp?" exclaimed Alicja. “I know how to talk to the Genie!" Adam reached for the box. "Can I wear the badge, Ricky? You can keep the book, you like reading!" "Everybody quiet!" yelled Ricky. "Only I know how to use all these things. And they are not toys!" "Come on, Ricky," said Adam. "Tell us what this is all about!" Alicja added sweetly: "Yes, please!" Ricky opened the parcel and took out a small blue book with stars and moons on the front cover, a shiny badge the size of a belt buckle, and something like a little gravy dish with a cover. “All right, this is the magic Time Book,” he said. “And this is the badge for direct contact with the spaceship Enterprise, and here we have Aladdin’s Lamp, which should have The Ring inside.” “Yes, it is here.” He took a shiny ring with a ribbon attached to it and placed it around his neck.

 

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“Wow!” shouted Alicja. “Can I hold the Lamp?” “Can I wear the Badge, Ricky?” added Adam. "All right," replied Ricky. "But be quiet you two. I need to read the Time Book first. ”Why?" asked Alicja and Adam in chorus. Ricky looked at Alicja and Adam. "Listen, the contest people like my idea to travel back in time and compare my life now with that of earlier generations,” said Ricky. “What I know is that The Book makes time travel possible if I say a magic verse, The Lamp makes three wishes come true in case we get lost, The Ring is a back-up for time-travel and The Badge gets us in touch with the Enterprise to beam us out, if all else fails. “How does the Time Book work?" asked Adam. “Well,” said Ricky. "You need a rhyme to make a spell." “What’s a spell?” asked Alicja. “It’s a magic command for time travel,” replied Ricky. "It orders a time-traveling mist to swirl up and sweep you away to past times. The Time Trio boys used it often – I like

 

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reading their stories. Anyhow, I remember a spell starting like this:

Hickory dickory dock. Y'ippee hippee tee. Take us back somewhere over the deep blue sea.

But this would not work as it must be more specific." "What is specific?" asked Alicja. "Well, you can't just say "somewhere" but must specify the time or the place." "Like what?" said Adam. Ricky scratched his head. "Like say: take us back to when our Grandpapa was a boy like me." "Ha," exclaimed Alicja. "That's funny! You could say:

Hickory dickory dock. Yippee hippee tee, Take us back to when Grandpapa was a boy like Ricky."

"That might work," said Ricky. "Then a green time-traveling mist would start to swirl around and take us to Poland." Just then a faint wisp of green mist seemed to curl out of the Time Book. "Oh, no," said Adam.

 

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The green mist swirled thicker and deeper. "I'm scared," said Alicja. The mist rose over their feet, the bed, and the bookshelves. “Cool," said Ricky.

 

 

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JOURNEY I

1946 Poland: Grandfather, here I come!

As the magic cloud dissolved around them, Ricky and Alicja found themselves standing in a small backyard behind a one-story apartment house. With living quarters on three sides, the fourth side faced a park. There was a road sign with red letters on it at the gate leading to the park entrance. "Strange words,” observed Alicja looking at the sign. "That's not English." She tried to spell out the words: Uwaga, tylko dla pieszych! "Hey," she said. "That can only be Polish. We are in a jam! This must be the place where Grandpapa came from and we don't even know the lingo!"

 

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"Not so," replied Ricky. "We can ask the Genie to help. Alicja objected immediately, ''I'm not giving my Lamp to you!" Ricky turned to Alicja. "Let me have the Lamp. It's not yours and only I know how to use it." Reluctantly, Alicja handed it over. Ricky patted the Lamp gently. "When I rub it," he said, "I can use one of my wishes to make us understand any language spoken to us." "Go on, Ricky!" Alicja was excited. “That's neat! I want to sing in Polish!” “Quiet!” said Ricky. He rubbed the Lamp and spoke to it: “My wish is to know any language we hear.” A small puff of smoke came out of the Lamp, then nothing else happened. “It doesn't work,” said Alicja. "Don't be silly," replied Ricky. “We are speaking English, wait till somebody talks to us in another language!" “Hey, wait!” exclaimed Alicja looking alarmed. “Where is Adam?” “Relax,” said Ricky. “He stayed behind, as we asked for our grandpa, not his! Genie is very smart!” "OK, let's check out this place in the

 

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meantime,” suggested Alicja. They walked across the backyard towards its center where stood a large well, complete with a pretty little roof and a bucket next to the handle. They peered over the edge to see how deep it was when they heard a voice behind them. “Would you like some water to drink?" A boy, about Ricky's age, was standing at the door of the middle apartment and smiled at them. They could understand what he said but it was a weird feeling because the boy was not speaking in English. It was even stranger when Ricky replied, "No, thank you,” amazed because the boy clearly understood the answer. Ricky and Alicja looked at each other thinking, It works! The boy joined them by the well. "Are you visiting the owner Pani Grabowska?" he asked. Ricky was quick to think of a reply. “We've been playing in the park and your gate was open," he explained. "Don't you have school today?" asked Alicja. "My teachers have meetings today so we

 

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have a free day but my Mama is away teaching at another school," he explained.

“What is your name?" asked Alicja. "My name is Marek. What are yours?" he replied. After introducing themselves, Ricky asked, “Why are Polish names so

different?” Marek laughed, “Actually, my name is quite common and easy, too!”

Then he added, “But your name seems strange to me; “Ricky is not a Polish name”. “You are right”, admitted Ricky, “in fact, my name is Richard, thus short as Ricky.” "Well, I've done my chores in the house and am now free to play," said Marek. "Would you like to join me?" "Sure," replied Ricky. "I have to go to the restroom,"

 

 

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announced Alicja. "I mean ... to a toilet." "We don't have a toaleta in the house. The toilet is over there," said Marek pointing to a small building at the far corner of the backyard. Alicja hesitated, a bit unsure but since nature called she decided to make use of the outhouse. Soon she emerged with a smile; all was well! Now, Ricky decided that he had better go too. "Do you have a sister?" Alicja asked Marek while waiting for her brother. "No, but my Mama talks all the time about how nice it would be to have a girl in the house!" He led her to the apartment through a small verandah where the whole floor was covered with figurines of tin soldiers and armaments, obviously engaged in a fierce battle. "My army is winning," he announced proudly. "We, the Polish army, have completely surrounded the Germans!" Just then, hearing their voices, Ricky joined them. "Is this your room?" he asked. "I play here," replied Marek, "but I don't have a room of my own. My Mama and I sleep in the room behind the kitchen. And I have a desk

 

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there – come and see!" They walked through a small kitchen, most of which was taken by a large stove with bins full of coal and wood in front of it. A table with two chairs stood at the window opening on to the verandah, a sideboard with cups and plates and a wash-basin with a bucket underneath it, completed the simple furnishings. A kerosene lamp hung from the wall. The kitchen was very clean and neat. Wow, thought Ricky. They don't have electricity or running water here, and certainly no bathroom! Never mind TV, there is no telephone or even a radio! They entered a spacious second room which, with two beds and a large mahogany table with six chairs, looked like a bedroom and dining room combined, but was rather crowded with a wardrobe standing against one wall, a large desk in one corner and a tall up-to-the-ceiling tile stove in the other corner – the source of heat for the whole 2-room apartment. The room had two windows (with a standing mirror in between) in the wall facing the street and overlooked a small garden. "Before the war,” explained Marek, "we

 

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lived in an elegant 3-bedroom home, there was a nanny and a maid to help my Mama. When the war ended last year, for the next nine months we lived in just one room. This apartment is much better!" Ricky remembered from history books that the world war in Europe finished in 1945, so he thought: This must be the year 1946 - my grandfather was 9-years old then! Could Marek be our Grandpapa? "Were you scared during the war?" asked Ricky. "It was very scary when we stayed in the cellar with another two families and you could hear the bombs falling. But it was fun to play in the street with real bullets." he laughed. "Did your mother allow you to do that?" asked Alicja. "She didn't know," said Marek, "until I was wounded – see, here!" and he proudly showed them a scar under his knee. "How did you get wounded?" Ricky wanted to know. "One of the soldiers staying in our house fired his rifle accidentally into a brick wall and a piece of the bullet hit me!" "Wow," Ricky was impressed. "Why were

 

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the soldiers staying in your house?" "Don't you remember?" replied Marek. "Every family had to house some soldiers." Ricky pretended he'd forgotten. "Sure,” he said. "But they didn't have to bring their rifles into the house!" Alicja changed the subject. "Where do you keep your stuff, I mean your toys?" she asked. "You saw my things on the verandah. I also have a lot of books there and, in our shed, I have a wheel which I ride." Alicja was surprised. “How can you ride a wheel?" Marek laughed. "I'll show you – it's a lot of fun!" He waved his hand and said, "Come!" They all left the apartment and followed him, across the backyard, to a shed next to the outhouse. It was full of coal and wood logs, including a chopping block. Marek picked up what had once been a bicycle wheel but was now just a rim stripped of its tire, and removed from a shelf a handle made of wire. He positioned the handle behind the rim and pushing it firmly made the wheel roll. "This is how I ride the wheel," he smiled.

 

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"The trick is to run fast behind it and control its turns with this handle. Try it," he said to Ricky. "It looks like fun... " Ricky started saying but was interrupted by Alicja. "But what can we do together?" she asked. "I have a super game that I play with my friends!" replied Marek excited. “I have all the stuff here. We play 'Cowboys and Indians' in the park!" "Great!" exclaimed Ricky. "What do we do?" "You will be a cowboy," said Marek. I will be an Indian and Alicja will be my squaw. You also have to choose your names for the game. My name is Chief Eagle Eyes!" Taking out various things from a box, he said, "Now we need to dress up; here are wooden guns, hats and belts, tomahawks, and Indian headbands with feathers. We will play a 'hide-and seek' game in the park and later on will dance around the wigwam which we have on the other side of the park." He paused briefly. "But first,” he smiled, "we have to paint our faces!" "Cowboys did not paint their faces!"

 

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protested Ricky. "In our game, everybody paints their faces,” laughed Marek. "Use your imagination! Come, I'll show you!" "I want to paint my face first!" exclaimed Alicja. Soon, the children ran happily into the park, complete in their 'disguises'. They played the game for over an hour after which everybody was thirsty and hungry. Marek then said to his friends. "Now, we are going to have some juicy apples but we have to pick them ourselves." "Where, Marek?" Ricky was surprised. "Right here, next to the park," replied Marek. “A friendly farmer allows us to eat his apples provided we eat what we pick and don't damage his trees. It's a lot of fun because we have to climb over the fence, and also climb the trees to pick the apples. But we mustn't shake the branches too much. Oh, we must also watch for the dogs, but they are friendly and they know me!" "Hey, you sure have a lot of things to do here!" said Ricky. "That's not all," said Marek. "After the

 

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apples, we'll crawl in the hay in the farmer's barn!" "I would like that!" giggled Alicja. For Ricky and Alicja it was a wonderful adventure. First, they climbed a fence into the farmer's apple orchard. The dogs ran up barking at them but, recognizing Marek, just wagged their tails. He selected a few fun trees to climb and even Alicja had no difficulty in getting up and set herself firmly on one of the branches. The boys collected the apples and everybody thought they were delicious. "They are called papierówki," said Marek. "It means, as soft as paper!" He also showed them how to swing on the branches and slide down the tree trunks. This took a bit longer because Alicja insisted that she must do whatever the boys did! From there they went to the barn, which was full of hay, right to the ceiling! Marek led them to a labyrinth of 'tunnels' in the hay through which they could crawl until they reached an opening in the middle of the hay pile. Marek said, "This is our secret 'Club', even the farmer doesn't know about it!" It was amazing that the children could

 

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still breathe among all the hay and dust but it was fun even if everybody was soon quite dirty! "Now," suggested Marek after they had rested in the Club, "if you like we can go back to the park and play soccer. I have a fine ball waiting in the shed. Come with me!" Once they reached the shed, Marek emerged holding a ball and proudly announced, "My Mama made it for me!" The children looked at it in disbelief as his ball was made of... rags! "How can we play soccer with that?!?" whispered Ricky to himself. But after practicing a few kicks with Marek's rag ball, the children were surprised to find that the ball could bounce and when kicked went quite far. Soon, other boys from the neighborhood joined in and an energetic soccer game was in progress. Everybody was having fun but not Alicja. Just as she was getting fed up with what she called “too much boys' stuff", a sister of one of the players came to her carrying a colorful doll. "What a pretty dress!" observed Alicja. "This is my Wanda doll in her krakowianka dress," said the girl.

 

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"I have a dress like that!" exclaimed Alicja. "My Grandpapa gave it to me." "Every girl in Poland has a krakowianka dress," insisted the girl. "What is your name?" "Alicja, and yours?"

"Wanda." "Why do you also call your doll Wanda?" asked

Alicja. "Well, you should know," said Wanda. "She was the bravest princess in Kraków and saved our

country. She is my heroine." "I've heard about her, of course,” said Alicja. "But I don't remember the whole story." "I'll tell you some of it," Wanda volunteered. "It goes like this."

“In the powerful Kingdom of Kraków, a long long time ago, the wise and good King Krak died of old age without leaving a male heir to the throne. But he had a young daughter, Princess Wanda, who was famous for her beauty and good sense. So the elders of the kingdom decided that she

 

 

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should be the new ruler, even though she was only a teenager.

"Do you recall what happened next?" Wanda asked. "I think so," replied Alicja but they were interrupted by the boys arriving from their soccer game. "We could walk to the river now, which is just next to my school," suggested Marek. "You can see there a lot of pretty fish – they are carp." “I like to fish!" stated Ricky. So the children took a stroll through the small town of Grybów on the way to the river. On the way, they could see the signs of war with many damaged buildings. But an imposing gothic church survived untouched and, as they approached Marek's school, they observed that this, too, had been spared in the bombing. The Elementary School was just one single-story building consisting, as Marek explained, of seven grades. Being 9 years old, he attended Grade Three. He had started his schooling at the age of 6 going first to a play-school (ochronka), followed by a one-year kindergarten (przedszkole). When he entered

 

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Grade 1 in 1944, this was still during the war when Poland was under German occupation and the language of instruction was German. "Do you like your school?" asked Alicja. "Yes, very much", replied Marek. "I love history and arithmetic." "Do you have a lot of homework?" added Ricky. "Sure," exclaimed Marek, "because my Mama makes me do more work!" "Why?" Alicja was shocked. "As a school teacher she tells me all the time that a good education is worth more than gold!" Then he added, "When I grow up, I will be a professor in America!" The children laughed because Marek looked so determined. Then Ricky asked, "How can you be so certain of your future, and why go to America?" "Because last year we had a hypnotist visiting here with a lady who was telling the future, and Mama and I went to the show because we haven't heard from my father since the war. The lady said we would hear from my dad soon from a far away country, and Mama

 

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also asked her what my future would be. I remember it well because the lady said: Wybije sie wysoko w Ameryce! ('He will reach very high in America'). A week later we received a letter from my dad – he was well and missing us. We could hardly believe it! So, I am sure that what the lady said about my future will also come true. I am also sure that God loves me and my Guardian Angel is protecting me." Ricky was really intrigued by this explanation and said quietly, "I am sure that our loving God has special plans for all of us here – it feels like we are a family. But why are you so certain that you are being protected?" Marek replied without hesitation, "I have proof! When I was 3-years old I had a terrifying experience and nearly died when my nanny accidentally dropped a pot of boiling water on my head. I suffered severe burns all over but survived. And, remember what I told you about that soldier who nearly shot me last year?" Everybody was silent for a while, deep in thought about these amazing stories, until Alicja changed the subject. "How many girls go to your school?"

 

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"No girls," replied Marek. "They have their own elementary school. But there are 20 boys in my class and we have 10 teachers!" "Wow, do you have that many subjects?" asked Steven. "Well, let me count," Marek looked serious. "I have literatura, historia, fizyka, arytmetyka, geografia, higiena, religia, plus gimnastyka. "So many things to learn!" exclaimed Alicja. "I also have boy scouts, folk dancing, and drawing!" Ricky looked at the school and observed. "I don't see any playing fields at this school." "There is a big backyard to run around in between the classes," said Marek, "and we have gymnastics every week." "What do you do during vacations?" asked Ricky. "Every summer," Marek said happily, "Mama and I spend our vacation with Dziadek (grandfather) Hugo in Kraków. There I play soccer with friends and Dziadek takes me to the movies often because there is no movie house here!"

 

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"It looks like a quiet town," observed Alicja. "We have not seen any cars." "I rode in a car once during the war," explained Marek. "The army chauffeur allowed us children to ride with him when he took the car to garage it overnight. That was fun!" "Ah," exclaimed Alicja. "Here is the river, right behind your school. Let's see if there are any fish in it." As they approached the riverbank, they noticed a few ducks swimming around and, upstream, a cow was standing in the middle of it, drinking water. Downstream, quite undaunted, children were swimming and diving from the rocky banks. "This is a quiet spot here, so the fish like it," said Marek. "Oh, look over there!" "Yes, so many of them and so big!" exclaimed Alicja. "Hey, they are not afraid of us!" "The carp fish are very smart and hard to catch," said Marek. "You can't fool them even with a fat worm at the end of a stick." "So, how do you catch this carp?" Ricky asked. "We don't," laughed Marek. “But Mama

 

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says that my dad could catch fish with his own hands!" "That would be fun to watch!" called out Alicja. "Where is your father, Marek?" asked Ricky. Marek was silent for a moment. "He left to fight in the war when I was only three," he said with a sad look on his face, "and is now far away in Africa trying to reach us. We had a parcel of food and clothes from him yesterday." Suddenly, he smiled. "There was ham and candy in it! Yum, yum, yummy!" Ricky thought, He seems such a happy kid yet his mom is a single-mother! I wonder why did his dad go to Africa? I better not ask! "Do you remember him even though you were only 3-years old?" asked Ricky. "Yes," replied Marek, "because he played with me a lot and we had such fun together!" Then he turned to Alicja and said proudly, "He was the Principal of the Girls' School!" "You must miss him a lot," said Ricky. "I wonder what he was like when he was a boy like you?" Marek was excited now. “Mama told me that he was a very happy boy, even though his

 

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family was very poor. They lived on a farm in the hill country and he learned to catch fish with his hands and this was always their best meal!" As at a signal, Alicja and Ricky looked at each other and she nodded to Ricky as if in agreement. Ricky pulled out The Ring from around his neck and started to rub it. "Transport us, oh Genie,” he commanded, "to Marek's dad when he was a boy!" "What are you doing?" said Marek in disbelief. Suddenly, the ground shook and a little cloud started gathering around them. Marek was barely able to breathe. "What is happening to us?" he whispered. "Don't be afraid, we are off on a magic trip! Again!" said Alicja. "Cool," said Ricky.

 

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JOURNEY II

1915 Kingdom of Galicja∗ with Great Grandpapa!

They were standing by a river but it was not the same river and not the quiet spot where they saw the pretty carp a few minutes ago. In fact, a cloud was still dissolving in front of them, with the opposite bank not yet visible. This river was wide and flowing fast! "What happened?" asked worried Marek. "Don't be afraid!" said Ricky. "You are with us on a magic journey to visit your dad when he was your age!" "But that's impossible!" protested

                                                                                                               ∗  Historical name for this Polish Kingdom of the Austrian Empire.

 

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Marek. "Listen," said Alicja, "magic things happen all around us! Remember how you told us about the hypnotized lady knowing about your missing dad? And do you know the story of Aladdin with the Genie in his Lamp and The Ring on his finger?" "Sure, a nice Arabian fairy tale," replied Marek. "But... but ... I don't know what to say...!" "Wait," exclaimed Alicja. "I hear something coming!" Their conversation was interrupted by a loud "moo-moo" sound and a cow emerged from the bushes behind them. The animal did not take much notice of them and proceeded instead straight to the green grass on the riverbank. "Hey, Krasula, wait for me!" A boy shouted while running behind the cow and waving a stick. "Don't scare my fish"! Seeing the children, he stopped and shrugged his shoulders. "She does what she wants, anyway!" The boy was barefoot, wearing just shorts with suspenders, no shirt, and a straw

 

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hat. "Ah," he said smiling, "you look lost! Were you in the woods picking mushrooms?" "It would help to know where we are!" exclaimed Ricky and hastily added, "We are city kids learning about country life!" "That's good," said the boy. "You've come to the right place; I can tell you everything about this area!" He waved his hand with confidence, "This village is Muszyna, on the river Poprad, and the mountains behind are Karpaty (Carpathians) of Polish Galicja." Then he added, "Where are you going?". Ricky had an explanation ready. "We wanted to play by the river and see people fishing!" "Well, I can join you," said the boy, "because my Krasula will be busy eating for a while." "It's a nice name for a cow," observed Marek. "And what is yours?” "I'm Tadeusz, my friends call me Taddy." Ricky introduced his group, "I'm Ricky, this is my sister Alicja and our friend Marek." "Where are you from?" asked Taddy. "I live in Grybów," explained Marek,

 

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"but…" Taddy interrupted, "Oh, I know where that is, my eldest brother Jan had a girlfriend there. It's about a day's ride." Then he added with a smile, "But his horse was old and slow!" "I like your cow," said Alicja to Taddy. "Are you looking after her?" "Yes," replied Taddy. "We are a large family of seven children and everybody has duties; Jan is the eldest at 21 – and I'm the youngest at 9: so I am in charge of Krasula and fishing." "Can you fish with your hands?" Marek asked remembering what he had heard from his dad. "That's my specialty," said Taddy proudly. "Come, I'll show you!" The group walked towards the river. It was a lovely summer day, very warm but with a light wind. Taddy pulled out a net from his pocket. "This is for carrying fish. Could you hold it, please, Alicja?" "Sure," she replied. "But I also want to help catch fish!" "All right," he laughed. "Everybody will

 

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be able to help!" Taddy explained that the fish are trout (pstrong) who like this river because it has lots of rocks to hide under, it is fast flowing and cool, and quite shallow with plenty of insects to feed on. The trick is to get the fish into that

part of the river where it makes a large loop creating a few side pools. Then one has to block

 

 

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the entrance to one of the pools with a few stones, wade in, and stand quietly in the water, waiting for the right moment to grab the fish as fast as possible. "A little bit of luck and skill also helps," he added. Ricky and Alicja took their shoes off and joined Marek and Taddy who, being barefoot, were already wading in the river. Now, they could see the trout everywhere, but who could possibly catch them by hand?!? Taddy was confident that he could and they looked in awe as he stood quietly in one of the pools, bending over a few stones and holding his hands just above the water. It seemed like he was a frozen statue for quite a while. Then, suddenly, he sprang into action with a big splash of his hands, and – lo and behold – there was the catch of the day: he was holding proudly a large trout wiggling vigorously in the air. "Bring the net, Alicja!" he called. Alicja was happy to oblige and he said. "Please look after this trout well!" Then he turned to the boys. "We need two more for our lunch today. Let's get them!" Amid much splashing and many near-

 

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misses, it took another hour before more fish were caught but the visitors finally did get the knack and everybody had fun. Marek and Taddy caught one fish while Alicja and Ricky could hardly believe that they, too, shared the honors of 'bagging' the other one. Taddy, in turn, was very proud of them all. "You learn fast and you bring luck!" he said. "This is a big catch – my mother will be very pleased to see us. So, come with me and meet my family!" But first they had to collect Krasula the cow and steer her home. On the way, Taddy explained they would need to milk Krasula on arrival and also brush her and tidy up the barn. "Nothing much," he assured them. "We will still have plenty of time to play before lunch." Ricky was interested in other things. “Don’t you go to school?" "I do," Taddy replied, “but tomorrow is the Kaiser's birthday so we have a holiday. My mother jokes that she loves the Kaiser because he gives her so many days to keep the children at home helping on the farm!" "Who is the Kaiser?” asked Alicja shyly. "You must be too young to know, Alicja.” said Taddy. "The Kaiser is Emperor Franz

 

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Joseph of Austria. Right here in the Galicja Province we have Polish schools but we have to pray in German for his good health. Haven't you seen his portrait in your school? He has a big moustache and lots of medals!” Everybody laughed. Then Marek asked, “Taddy, in what grade are you?" "I am 9, so am in Grade 3" he replied. “My elementary school here has four grades which everybody has to complete. After that, further schooling is optional. But I will go to study at the middle school (gymnasium) in the city. I want to be a teacher when I grow up!” Marek thought, This is all so confusing: is it possible that he is to become my father? Should I tell him that he will succeed as a teacher and become the school principal in Grybów? Perhaps, not! Ricky thought, I remember my dad telling me stories about GrandDaddy Taddy! This must be him! He will never believe that one day he will live in Africa after the big war! Then he scratched his head thinking, How can this be Poland if the Emperor is from Austria? Alicja had other interests, "How many

 

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sisters do you have, Taddy?" "I have two sisters and four brothers but the country is at war so all my brothers are

away in the army. My sisters are helping Mama at home because they have finished their schooling." Just then, they approached the village square with a pavilion in its center, decorated

 

 

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with white-and red flags. They stopped at a notice board on which a colorful poster was displayed. "Look here!" said Taddy. "Here is a list of all the events to celebrate the Kaiser's birthday tomorrow. My mother says that the best of them are the Village Fair and the Open Market!" "Let me read it," said Marek. "Long live our Gracious Kaiser Franz Joseph! Polish Galicia wishes His Imperial Majesty a most Happy 85th Birthday on August 18, anno Domini 1915." Ricky thought, This is 1915! We have traveled back in time 100 years! Unbelievable! This is so cool! Taddy said, "Let's go home and give my mom the fish!" As Taddy led them on cheerfully, the children were fascinated to be walking through a real peasant village, bustling with activities, with animals being herded along the main road. A few horse-drawn wagons passed by and an occasional man on horseback. Ricky thought, This looks sort of like an Old West town but without the gunmen and the saloons! Taddy's house was a modest, farm home

 

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facing the main road with a small flower and vegetable garden in front, and a small farm behind. The property was completely walled off from the road with a large double entrance door in the middle of the house, serving as a gate for animals or horse-drawn wagons to pass through. This opened onto the backyard, on one side of which stood a small barn housing one cow and two pigs and, on the opposite side, an equally small stable for one horse and a wagon. Chickens were scratching around everywhere and geese could be heard cackling in the distance. The left-hand side of the house consisted of the kitchen with a large stove, a sideboard and a large table with benches and chairs indicating that this was the main family room. A bed in the corner completed the furnishings. Behind the kitchen-family room was the parents' bedroom. The right-hand side of the house had two small bedrooms where most of the children slept: four boys in one room, two per bed, and the girls in the other room each having their own bed. Taddy slept in the kitchen. There was no electricity or running

 

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water in the house. There was a water well in the backyard in one corner and, surrounded by bushes in the other corner, stood an outhouse. When the children entered the kitchen, they noted that it was cheerfully decorated in bright colors with holy pictures on the walls, the whole place looking very clean and neat. Marek thought, This home looks more comfortable than our two-room apartment with the verandah in Grybów. They don't live too badly by our standards. Ricky thought, Taddy doesn't have any toys and he sure does not need any - the farm is his toy and joy! He seems so happy! "Mama, I'm bringing trout for lunch!" Taddy called out loudly. A cheerful somewhat plump lady came out to greet the children upon hearing Taddy's voice. "What's happening?" she called. “Are we having a party? What a big bunch you are bringing home, Taddy!" Taddy hugged his mother and kissed her hand tenderly. “These are my new friends from the city," he announced. “They want to observe country life – they learned fast how to fish and brought us luck catching trout!"

 

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"Bless you, my child!" exclaimed the lady. "Bring them all in, welcome children – and what a pretty girl we have here." "I need to go to the toilet, please madam," announced Alicja. "Not again, Alicja!" said Ricky embarrassed. "Come with me, panienka (little lady)," said Taddy's mother. "It must be urgent .... " And they marched off towards the outhouse. Once inside it, Alicja hesitated seeing a hole in the seat large enough for her to fall through! But the kind lady helped her to steady herself and said smiling, "This is country living for you! But when you are running around in the fields, remember you might as well go behind the bushes!" Alicja thought, I don't see any toilet paper but the newspaper is cut so neatly.... Once back in the house, Alicja joined the boys in the backyard while Taddy's mom started preparing the trout for lunch. They were fascinated watching Taddy milking Krasula and everybody wanted to try as well. Krasula did not look too happy about so many ‘changing hands' but co-operated fairly well. "Won't she kick me?" Alicja asked

 

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anxiously. "Don't worry," replied Taddy. “She is very good-natured and accustomed to children." "Who looks after the pigs?" asked Marek. Taddy said, “I help with the pigs. Ah, once a year we make our own kielbasa! Its delicious! Come, let's go and see these animals!" "I love kielbasa!" exclaimed Alicja. "Me too!" shouted Marek and Ricky simultaneously and everybody laughed. They spent the next hour in the barn and when they went to check on the pigs, they ‘hoinked' and ‘oinked' happily expecting food. But even though none came, they seemed pleased with the children's company. Ricky was clearly enjoying himself visiting a real farm and Taddy was answering questions all the time. "Wow," said Marek with admiration. “Taddy knows so much about farming!" "Oh," replied Taddy, "I just learn by doing what has to be done; in our family we must rely on one another!" "That's interesting," said Ricky, "tell us who does what?"

 

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"Well," said Taddy, “let me think. My mother is Gospodynia domu (the lady of the house) who cooks and looks after the vegetable garden and also assigns us our daily duties because my dad is away as an officer in the army; he is a kapitan. But, Mama says, his salary helps a lot! Now, my sisters do the house cleaning and gardening because they finished school at Grade 4. I'm in charge of Krasula and also help with the pigs and the geese." Then, he added smiling, "And I fish, oczywiscie" (of course). "Can I feed the chickens?" asked Alicja, “"There are so many of them!" "Let's do that after lunch," suggested Taddy. "We'll check on the geese now but be careful, they may try to bite you!" The children walked past the barn and across an open field towards a little pond in the meadow. A bunch of geese were making their presence known and hissing excitedly. The shepherd dog who was guarding them barked happily upon seeing the children. “This is my dog," announced Taddy proudly. "He is trained to stay with the geese and the ducks because there are foxes in the meadow. His name is

 

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Reego!" "What?" exclaimed Ricky. "I also have a dog named Reego! My dad gave him that name!" "That's strange," added Marek. "It was also my dad's favorite name for dogs. He said Reego was short for Rigoletto, which has something to do with music!" "What a coincidence!” exclaimed Taddy. "My uncle was a famous violinist and often played a song called Rigoletto for my mom.” "Why would anybody call a dog after a song?" Alicja was amused. "Perhaps he howled in tune!" suggested Ricky and everybody laughed. "Lunch is ready, children!" called out Taddy's mom walking towards them. "Let's eat!" called Taddy and the children ran following him. Taddy's sisters, Hela and Eugenia, were in attendance serving lunch but were very quiet. Everybody set around the table but only after they had washed their hands and their faces. "Food tastes better when you are clean!" joked Taddy's mother. “Now we will say a prayer!" she said and they bowed their heads. "Bless, oh God, us and your gifts which,

 

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by your generosity we are about to receive – so we may praise you. Through Jesus Christ our Lord. And bless, Lord, your children everywhere. Amen.” The lunch consisted of fried trout, boiled potatoes sprinkled with butter, tomato salad and milk. "What a tasty fish!" exclaimed Marek. “I wish I could catch fish as well as Taddy does!" "It takes a little bit of practice," replied Taddy modestly. “But you have started well." Alicja and Ricky kept quiet not being keen on eating fish but they were so hungry that this time they ate everything. Marek also enjoyed the meal and remarked, “My dad loves fish and he often quotes a Polish proverb: Dobra rybka nie jest zla (a good fish is not a bad fish). “My dad says that, too!" exclaimed Taddy and burst out laughing. “That's funny!" giggled Alicja. “Well, children," said Taddy's mom. “Since you've eaten your fish so nicely, maybe I'll find something for desert." There was a lot of cheering and excited expectation, "What will it be?" until she produced a cake and a jar

 

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of jam. "This is babka with maliny (raspberries) – my favorite!" exclaimed Taddy. "Mine, too!" Marek joined in. Evidently everybody liked the taste of babka because soon all the plates were empty! Even the milk was gone. “Thank you very much," said Ricky. “I’ve never tasted such a nice fish and also such good milk." "That is because the trout is fresh and so is the milk," at last sister Hela said something. “Now, children," said Taddy's mother, “would you like to run around outside or would you like to relax a bit and hear a good story?" “After such a big lunch, maybe we'll let settle first for listening to a story," suggested Ricky. “Yes, please!" added Marek. “Good," said Taddy's mom. "After we clear the table." “I need to go to the toilet," said Alicja. “But I know where to go!" And she ran promptly to the backyard and disappeared behind the bushes. She is a fast learner, thought Taddy's

 

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mother and smiled when the boys also had to excuse themselves to be led by Taddy into another part of the garden. When everybody was back and comfortably seated on the front steps of the house, around Taddy's mother, she began her story.

"Long, long time ago, there was a major battle between the bravest knights of the time, which decided the destiny of Poland. This was the Battle of Grunwald between Poland and Prussia in 1410. In those days, a battle was a great spectacle for the common people and in this case, a scribe by the name of Dlugosh actually climbed a big tree to observe what was going on and to chronicle the events. And this is what he wrote:

“The Polish king was directing the battle from a small hill, sending out messengers with battle orders. Suddenly and unexpectedly, a German regiment appeared on the horizon. The riders were the last Prussian reserves, which up to now were guarding their Grand Duke's tent. To join the battle, they had to pass very near the little hill from which the

 

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Polish king was giving his orders. As the Polish guard moved to form a wall to encircle their king, he insisted on standing in the front row ready to fight, if necessary. The German regiment advanced like a hurricane, so near that their coats of arms were clearly visible on their shields, but they were so intent on their mission to join the main battle that they did not notice the small group of Polish knights, particularly, as the guards had lowered the king's standard so as not to attract attention.

Messengers were sent requesting urgent reinforcements to guard the king. Nobody responded, all were committed to the battle. A young messenger galloped up to report this to the king who was still standing in the front row of his small royal guard. The messenger did not notice that following immediately behind the German regiment was a band of skilled foreign archers, one of whom did see the shining armor of the Polish king, and deciding that this must be somebody important, fired a deadly arrow. In horror the guard watched as the arrow sped towards the king who

 

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was looking the other way and would have been mortally wounded had not the young messenger fortuitously appeared before him and been struck by the arrow in the shoulder thus saving the king!

"Stanislaus!" exclaimed the king. "I owe my life to you!"

At dusk, after prayers of victory and thanksgiving, King Jagiello of Poland assembled three dozen men who had distinguished themselves in battle, asked them to kneel and proclaimed them knights. Among them was the young messenger Stanislaus of Bieniawa who thus received a coat-of-arms featuring the fateful arrow (herb strzaly). He was then 20 years old. And he was our ancestor many generations ago, married a beautiful maiden, and you saw our coat-of-arms on the wall in the kitchen!

Because Stanislaus was made a knight and received a little village, called Bieniawa, as his reward, his name became Bieniawski.

 

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Poland became a great power after the Grunwald battle but today, in 1915, we here are just a part of the Austrian Empire. We are self-governing as the Province of Galicja and our Polish language, customs and education are respected. But we are not a free nation! So, you my children are our future – you must remember this story and perhaps one day you will be free, like the Americans over 100 years ago.

 

 

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I hope that one day, Taddy will become a respected teacher in a free Poland and will be as brave and lucky as Stanislaus of Bieniawa was!"

The story finished, Ricky was very excited and exclaimed, “Yes, now I know my roots at last! It’s Stanislaus that we were seeking! Wow!” But Marek shook his head looking worried. "My Mama told me that she was born in Austria and my Dziadek (Grandfather) often says that ‘czasy austryjackie to najlepsze' (Austrian times are the best!). Is Austria a bad country?" "No," replied Pani Karolina. "There is no shame in being Austrian. After all, we are all Austrian citizens now and have a lot more freedom here in our Province of Galicja by comparison with the Polish people in Prussia and Russia. But we are not free and we must have a country of our own again. Well, if your mama and Dziadek came from Austria, try to find out more about their origins because a part of you is Austrian!" Then she hesitated and looked sad, “But you must know that Austria has done a very bad

 

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thing and we nearly died. Last year she went to war with Russia and it was Taddy who saved our family from starvation. So, I must tell you what happened as this is an incredible true story.” “Well,” she began, “the Eastern front of this war between Austria and Russia just happened to be running just across our town. After a few months of fighting, the whole area was devastated, there was nothing for us to eat, as the soldiers of both armies confiscated everything, killed farm animals and bombs ruined the fields. And all this was happening during winter. The fighting took place only during the day, and during the night the soldiers returned to their trenches, while the civilians had to live in underground shelters, such as cellars. Taddy knew that there were Polish units on both sides, tragically even fighting each other, as both Austria and Russia demanded compulsory military service of its men who lived in the occupied parts of Poland. Only the soldiers had food, either what they confiscated or supplies provided to them. With the front nearby, we had to move to our cellar where we spent the whole winter.

 

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“Because ours was a large cellar, two other families moved in with us. Soon, our supplies of potatoes, on which we lived, were exhausted. But our Taddy was the smartest of us all, and also fearless, and he had an idea. Scrounge food from the soldiers on both sides! We were absolutely desperate and scared, but Taddy said he was small enough to crawl out of the cellar through a little window that served as the access for delivering potatoes to the cellar for storage. So, whenever the firing stopped in the evening, our Taddy crawled out through that window and off he went to the Austrian trenches. The Polish soldiers there felt sorry for him so they loaded him with bread and tins of meat. Sometimes he even got a little chocolate! But that was not all! When all the pockets in his trousers were emptied, he ran out again, this time to the Russian soldiers! They, too, had Polish units and they were impressed with this poor skinny little boy, and they gave him not only bread but also soap and, once, even shoes! But this time, with so much on him, he couldn’t get through the little window into the cellar! So I had to pull him hard and in the process… his trousers fell off. It was very

 

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funny as he was standing there half-naked and embarrassed, but very proud of himself. Well, he was our little hero and everybody wanted to kiss him in gratitude! We are so proud of him; he saved us from starvation. Thank you, my little angel.” As Taddy blushed, she turned to the group. "Now, children, my girls and I will wash the dishes and you all go outside and run around – but, do not forget what I've told you today!” It was a message that made a deep impression on the children; they realized they'd heard powerful words about freedom, about survival during a war and the need to know one's heritage. Everybody was slow to get up, being deep in thought, except... Alicja who was fast asleep! “Come on, Alicja," Ricky shook her gently. “You've had enough time to digest your lunch!" Alicja was embarrassed but was quickly ready for action. Let's go back to the river," suggested Marek. "We had such a pleasant walk through the village square on the way here." They all agreed and followed Taddy. The afternoon sun shone brightly as the children

 

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approached the river and Marek said, “I am still thinking about my grandfather Hugo and why he likes Austria so much. I wonder what he was like when he was our age." Ricky turned to him, "If you really want to know, maybe we can help. Why not visit him! We can do it! " “I want to go home!" protested Alicja. Ricky said, "We need a new adventure!" He pulled out The Ring from around his neck, as everybody looked on in suspense. He rubbed it gently and commanded:

"Listen, oh Genie, to another wish. Take us to Marek's grandfather Hugo when he was a boy our age!"

They waited in silence and Alicja was about to say, It doesn't work! when they felt a little tremor and saw a spark of light pulsating out of The Ring. A cloud of mist started around them and they knew at once that they were off again!

"Cool," said Ricky.

 

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JOURNEY III

1892 Austria: Welcome to 122 years Ago!

"Wilkommen nach Österreich und Wien!" The voice sounded loud and clear but it surprised Taddy. "Why is he shouting in German?" he asked. Marek replied without hesitation: "He welcomes us to Austria and Vienna. They only speak German here!" "Ha, just as well I have to know German in Galicia," grumbled Taddy. "Well, for me also, German is easy," said Marek. "My mother is Austrian and she spoke German to me when I was little. Besides, my grandfather Hugo came from Vienna, I think." "I can also understand what he said." announced Alicja. "Of course," said Ricky. "Remember the

 

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Genie? He lets us understand and speak any language – in Poland it was Polish, here it is German." "I don't know what's going on!" exclaimed Taddy. "Where are we?" "Tell us, Marek," asked Ricky. "You wanted to visit Austria and find out why your grandfather Hugo thinks the Austrian times are the best!" "Well," said Marek, "my mother was born in Vienna, so this is where my Dziadek Hugo lived. But I have no idea what this place is!" Taddy looked around. "Well, this looks like a large railroad station and the man in uniform is shouting 'welcome' to the arriving passengers. Look, at that big steam locomotive!" "What did you expect?" said Marek. "We see them also in my small town!" Ricky thought, I had better keep quiet - in our time, steam trains are in museums! In this time, electric trains are not yet running! Alicja thought, I wonder what year is it? Then she said aloud, "Let's have a look at the train schedule!" and walked up to a large poster entitled Arrivals and Departures.

 

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"Aha!" Marek read loudly, "Train Schedule for the Month of August, 1893, Wien Hauptbahnhoff" (Vienna Main Station)." Alicja protested, "But we are not going anywhere by train!" Just then a stern voice was heard behind them: "Therefore, children, please do not crowd the space in front of the Schedules Poster!" The children turned around and saw a man in an impressive uniform, holding the hand of a boy, of about their age, very neatly dressed. "Move along, children," he said and turned to the boy. "They look lost, Hugo, don't you think?" "Maybe we can help them, Papá?" replied the boy. "They must be on vacation, they look so scruffy." said his father. “Anyhow, I'm in a hurry but you may talk to them and then run home to Mamá." "Yes, Papá." When his father walked off, the boy turned to the children and said, "We live above the station. My name is Hugo and if you are lost, I can help you!"

 

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They all spoke at once and Hugo laughed. "I can't understand if everyone is talking

at the same time!" Suddenly, they all were quiet. Ricky was the first to recover.

"We are looking for a museum of Austrian history",

he said. The children looked at him in surprise but since nobody had a better idea of what to say, they just nodded in agreement.

Hugo said, "Your group would not be admitted to any museum in Vienna looking like that!" and he pointed to Marek's, Ricky's and Taddy's bare feet. "Come," he continued, "visit me and we will ask Mamá what to do!"

 

 

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Hugo led the children through a large concourse and up the stairs to the upper level balcony. Ricky asked Hugo on the way, "How come you live above a railway station?" "This building is very large," was the reply, "and is not only the main station but it also has railways offices and residences. My father is a Superintendent of railways in Austria and as an imperial official he is entitled to an official residence!" "Wow," Marek was impressed. "Is that why he wears a uniform?" "Yes," said Hugo. "All state officials do." Ricky observed, "I have never seen a railway station this big!" "Vienna is one of the three main cities," Hugo explained, "on the rail route Berlin-Vienna-Budapest, known as the Orient Express." By now they were approaching a corridor leading to a wing marked Private Residences. A uniformed doorman guarded the entrance but upon recognizing Hugo, waved the children past. Hugo said politely, "Vielen dank, Herr Putzer!" They stopped in front of a door with a brass plate engraved with the name of the family Wirgi & Maria von Preinl'. "This is where

 

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we live," said Hugo and ran the bell. Marek thought, Is this a coincidence that his name is Hugo or will he actually become my grandfather? It's weird! I am standing here with my future father Taddy and my future grandfather Hugo! A young woman, wearing a maid's apron, opened the door and smiled at the children, "Hello, Hugo, your Mamá was wondering when you would be back!" "Thank you, Josephina, I've brought some friends with me." Josephina laughed. "You always find new friends to bring but I wonder what Frau Preinl will think of this lot!" she said looking at the barefoot children. Hugo was undisturbed and led them through a large apartment. He whispered, "She is the housekeeper and is also in charge of the cook and my nanny (governess). We are a large family with six children." They entered a spacious living room where an elegant lady in a long dress and an elaborate hair style ran towards them with extended hands, "Hugo, my child, you are home at last!" "These are my new friends, Mamá!" he

 

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said. "They need your help!"

"I can imagine that," replied Frau Preinl, looking them over with a disapproving eye. "Why don't you all sit down," she said, "and tell me what you are doing in Vienna." She turned to the maid, "Josephina,

please bring the children hot chocolate and kuchen (cookies)." Then she asked, "Well, children, are you lost?" "No, Madame," Marek ventured to answer. "We came here from Galicia to find out why my grandfather likes Austria so much! He studied and married here"! "Ah," replied Frau Preinl, "you must be well educated, your German is so good!" "Thank you, Madame," said Marek. "My mother was born in Gönsendorf, a suburb of Vienna."

 

 

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"Wunderbar!" exclaimed Frau Preinl. "And what position did your grandfather have?" "He was a Head-Office inspector at the Austrian railways," replied Marek. "Well, you come from a good family," commented Frau Preinl. "So you must be vacationing here, judging by your country clothes. But where are your parents?" At that moment Josephina distributed hot chocolate and kuchen to the children who immediately turned their attention to the refreshments. Hugo spoke first, "Pardon me, Mamá, but they told me that they would like to visit the museum of Austrian history and I said they would not be admitted anywhere in these clothes!" "That's right, my son," she said and after some thought she smiled at the children, "I have an idea what we will do. Your governess took your brothers and sisters on an outing to the Prater Amusement Park, which is just next to the history museum. Your new friends seem to be of your age, except for the little girl. Heaven knows we have enough of your spare clothes to outfit a soccer team! And the girl

 

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can go to the museum in one of your sisters' dresses. So, you will all dress up here and we will go to the museum and after that we will join the governess at the park. We will ride there in a carriage, of course, and on the way you can tell me all about your parents! Who likes this plan?" "Me! Me! Me!" were the loud shouts of the delighted children. "What is the Prater?" asked Alicja. "It's a wonderful amusement park," replied Hugo. "The Prater itself is an enormous rotating wheel with little wagons attached to it and when you ride to the top, the whole city is at your feet! It's a lot of fun to go there!" Frau Preinl pulled a chain summoning Josephina and instructed her to select an outfit for each of the boys from Hugo's wardrobe while she led Alicja to her daughters' room to find a dress. There was much excitement and frolicking in this undertaking, particularly among the boys who laughed at one another's appearance. When everybody emerged beautifully dressed in smart Austrian dresses, Josephina announced, "The carriage is waiting

 

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by the entrance, Madame!" "Come on, children!" called Frau Preinl. "Everybody loves riding in a Vienna fiakier!" "What's that?" whispered Taddy to Hugo. "It's a fancy horse-driven coach with a driver who wears a top hat and carries a long whip!" It was a magnificent ride through the busy streets of imperial Vienna and the children were fascinated by the fiakier, the imposing state buildings, so many elegantly dressed people, and the lovely weather. The museum was located in an area called the Vienna Woods and they enjoyed the long ride in a comfortable carriage. "Do you remember what your grandfather told you about Vienna?" asked Frau Preinl addressing Marek. He thought for a while. "Yes, Madame. He said that Vienna was a beautiful city and the people here were very friendly. He also said that everybody dressed well and had perfect manners!" Frau Preinl laughed. "I don't know about the manners but we love Vienna. Yes, Hugo?"

 

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"Jawohl, Mamá,” exclaimed her son. "I have lots of friends in my school and I love the kaiser brödchen mit würsten und quargle käse. Also the kuchen are the best in Vienna!" "You are such a funny boy, Hugo!" smiled Frau Preinl. "You have friends everywhere! But don't forget that Papá wants you to become an important official like him!" "I know, Mamá," said Hugo, "and I study hard because I like it." Frau Preinl turned to the children, "Hugo is the best in his class in writing and reading and we are very proud of him!" Just then they reached the Vienna Woods and Madame Preinl led them to the museum. The boys were not sure whether they would enjoy it and Alicja was definitely cross with Ricky for getting them to come here instead of going to play at the amusement park. But they did not have much choice and were quickly led to a children' section of the museum where the exhibits, maps and pictures were attractively displayed and a friendly guide was ready to explain everything. Marek thought, Let me see what is so great about this Austrian Empire!

 

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The guide smiled and said, "Welcome to our Museum of Austrian History, children! Thank you for coming and you all look so smart!" She continued, "The Austrian Empire is called Österreich in German, meaning the Eastern Empire, because the German Empire to the west is called Der Reich. Our Emperor is His Majesty Frantz Joseph but he is only a constitutional monarch, meaning that the real power is in the hands of the people, through their elected deputies in the Reichsrat (Parliament). "In fact, we are a federal empire and our constitution guarantees equal rights to all nationalities and languages in the Empire, the equality of all citizens before the law, freedom of religion and education, and an independent supreme court. We have many nationalities in the Empire and all are equal, be it Austrians, Hungarians, Polish, Czechs or Croatians. Each is represented proportionally in the Reichsrat by deputies elected by direct vote of the people in these provinces. Each province is also entirely governed by its own Diet (council), except for foreign affairs, finance and defense. "This may sound a little bit complicated,

 

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children, but you look very intelligent to me and will understand when I say that, by comparison, the Empires of Germany and Russia are authoritarian states while our Empire is highly tolerant and freedom minded. "And now, children," the guide continued, "please walk around these exhibits and other guides will help you with explanations or go outside into the garden where you will find fascinating exhibits of life in the various provinces of the Empire." "Let's walk to the Galicia exhibit and see what they say about us!" suggested Taddy. But others wanted Frau Preinl to take them to the Prater. Marek approached Madame Preinl and said, "I think I now understand why my grandfather is so impressed with Austria. He preferred the prosperity, culture and freedom here. But may I ask you, Frau Preinl, is this the best country to live in?” "What an unusual question!" replied Madame Preinl. "Well, we like it here very much and this is a fine place for Hugo to grow up because he is disciplined and an excellent student while also being good-natured. If he one day, marries an Austrian girl, it will be an

 

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excellent combination! But let Hugo tell you himself," and she turned to her son with a smile. "Yes, Mamá," said Hugo. "I want to be a railways official like Papá!" Ricky joined them and asked, "Your life seems very easy because your family is rich, you have servants and have a lot of fun with so many brothers and sisters. Isn't it so?" "Yes," said Hugo, "but I have duties too, have to earn my allowance, and have to study extra subjects to enter the civil service preparation Lyceum. "I'm 9-years old and the eldest of my brothers," he said proudly, "and I look after Mamá and my older sisters even if they boss me around!" Frau Preinl laughed, "Yes, you do look after me, Liebchen! So, let us now go to the Prater Park and Mamá will look after you all! Maybe we'll even find the rest of the family!" They walked from the Museum to the Amusement Park and the children were enchanted by the various attractions that could be seen in the Prater. There were carousels, clowns, miniature houses to hide in, the Prater wheel itself, and even a roller coaster.

 

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Ricky thought, This looks like a Disneyland or even better; and they had it over a 100 years ago! But Alicja was tired after what she thought had been a boring museum tour. Though interested in the amusement park, she wanted to go home! So, she lagged a bit behind the group and without telling anybody, pulled out the Aladdin's Lamp from her pocket, rubbed it well and said: "Take us back where we have come from, Genie!" As a puff of smoke from the Lamp became a mist, which enveloped Alicja and the boys, Frau Preinl and Hugo were left to wonder, explain the missing clothes, and how the visiting children had vanished into thin air! "Oops," said Alicja. As the cloud dispersed, Alicja knew at once that they were not at home. They were standing by the familiar river where they had caught trout with Taddy but now all of them were still dressed in the beautiful Austrian clothes, compliments of Frau Preinl. How would they explain this to Pani Karolina?!

 

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JOURNEY IV

Back to 1915: Good-Bye our Future Ancestors

Ricky turned to the others in amazement: "What happened?" he exclaimed. "One minute we were walking in Vienna now we are suddenly back where we departed from! This is Taddy’s place so it must be 1915!" "Yes," agreed Marek. "What an experience – I was snatched while talking to Taddy!" "And where are Frau Preinl and Hugo? What will they think of us?" somebody said. A meek voice was heard from Alicja, "Er..., it might have been me playing with Aladdin's Lamp. " "What?" interrupted Marek, "Why bring us here?" "I just wanted to go home," Alicja

 

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sobbed a little. "I was bored." Taddy was quite cheerful. "Hey," he said. "Don't worry, my friends, we had a great time in the big city and learned a lot about Hugo." He turned to Marek, "Are you happy that you've found out what you wanted to know?" "Yes, I am," replied Marek. "That was a real adventure! And I think I now understand why my grandfather loves Austria so much!" Taddy said, "For me it was very interesting because here we think the Austrian Empire is kind of a tyrant but maybe we are not so badly off. I must ask my mama about it." Then he turned to the group, "But does anybody know what Hugo does for fun? He seems very happy but takes his studies and duties so seriously!" Ricky said, "I asked him what his favorite toys were and he didn't have any! He told me that, when he was free from schoolwork and house chores, he played in the park with his friends, then during the evenings he read a lot and played games with his brothers and sisters. After all, there are six kids in the house!" "You don't need toys to be happy," said

 

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Taddy. "I can understand that because I don't have any either. There is so much to enjoy doing things outside!" "Girls should have dolls!" observed Alicja but there was no reaction from the boys. "Anyhow," said Alicja. "Hugo seemed happy and nice and that's most important. I also liked Frau Preinl." Ricky seemed very excited and exclaimed, “I am just very happy that I have met my Great Great Grandfather when he was a boy my age. Imagine that! Nobody will believe me!” Alicja had other ideas on her mind, "Can't we go home? And I need to go to the toilet!" Taddy said, "All right – let's have a race!" and the boys ran off leaving Alicja behind. Although she knew her way to Taddy's house, she was not pleased. Suddenly she had a thought, "Well, if it worked once with the Genie, it might work again!" So she pulled out the Lamp, rubbed it, and said: "Take us where we came from, Genie!" Again a puff of smoke came from the Lamp and a mist started to whirl around her

 

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but she also saw another mist developing in the distance around the running boys but not over Taddy. "Will we be closer to home wherever we arrive next?" Alicja wondered as she felt herself being lifted off the ground. This time, when the cloud dispersed, the children were standing by another river and Marek exclaimed: "This must be Grybów but Taddy is not with us!" "We are not home yet!" lamented Alicja. Ricky asked, "Did you fiddle with that Lamp again, Alicja?" "I wanted to go home!" was her disappointed reply. "And you left me behind!" complained Alicja. "All right," said Ricky, "now that we are together, how about making a plan what to do next!" "I know!" exclaimed Alicja. "Let's go home!" "What?" interrupted Marek, "Didn’t you enjoy what we did?" "Yes, but," Alicja hesitated and shrugged her shoulders, "We did too much 'boys' stuff' – I didn't play with any other girls. You all only wanted to run, fish and play soccer!"

 

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Ricky was impatient, "Alicja Elizabeth!" he exclaimed, "It's not our fault that there were no girls of your age in the family! So, what do you want now?" "Yes, come on," added Marek. "We want you to be happy!" "All right,” she replied with determination. "Since I am Alicja Elizabeth, I want to visit my Granny Elizabeth in Scotland when she was a girl! "OK, you’ve got it," agreed Ricky. "Marek, we have to leave you now. The same way we returned to your time after visiting Taddy, we must go back to our time. This is as good a time as any to say ‘Good-bye' to you and ’Thank you’!" "Well, where are you going? And how?” objected Marek but all he could do was watch with fascination as Ricky pulled out The Ring, hanging around his neck, and rubbing it gently three times, he said, "Let us go to where our Granny Elizabeth was a girl in Scotland!" Slowly, a mist surrounded Ricky and Alicja. They only had time to wave to Marek before they were off again on another time-travel adventure – to meet Granny Elizabeth as

 

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a little girl. "Now it's my turn for some 'girls' stuff'!" said Alicja happily.

"Cool," said Ricky.

 

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JOURNEY V

1946 Scotland: Two Elizabeths, One Cold City

Alicja was excited. At last she would have her own adventure! No more of the 'boys' stuff' only, and she thought that Ricky would also be pleased to meet Granny Elizabeth when she was a little girl. But as the cloud dispersed, she and Ricky found themselves standing at the top of a steep hill looking over rows and rows of gray, black-stained stone houses and it was cold and damp. Her enthusiasm waned and she wasn't sure it was such a good idea to come here after all. "Ugh! Where are we, Ricky?" she asked. "Beats me," was the reply. "We must be in Scotland because this is where Granny came from. I also remember that she lived in Glasgow – the largest city then. I think we need

 

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to wait until somebody passes by and we'll ask." Alicja was silent and, after a moment, Ricky continued. "I am also not sure if we meet Granny when she was your age or mine?" "Why?" exclaimed Alicja. "I want her to be my age!" "Ah," said Ricky. "The Ring is with me and when I gave the command I said, Take us to Granny Elizabeth when she was a girl our age! I think the Genie might follow my age." "Well," said Alicja, "how do we find out what year it is?" Ricky said, "We might as well sit down and wait until somebody shows up. Why not right here?" and they set down on the curb at the side of the road. They were silent for a while. Looking around they noticed a large stone building behind them surrounded by a high wall. It looked very old with all sorts of fancy turrets. Not a castle though, as there were no gardens or a moat, just a paved area that looked like – a schoolyard. Yes, possibly it was a school! At the bottom of the steep hill in front of them they could see a busy street with double-decker streetcars and a few automobiles and delivery

 

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vans and a lot of cyclists. At closer inspection, some of the houses were almost in ruins! Ricky thought, What a dreary place! Alicja thought, How could Granny Elizabeth live here?! Both of them began to feel uneasy. Just then they noticed somebody walking towards them from the big 'school'. They waited, intrigued, wondering who it might be. They saw a little girl, about their age, walking energetically along with a large backpack over

her shoulders and wearing a uniform with a badge.

Here comes a schoolgirl, they thought.

The girl was tall but very skinny, wearing short pigtails and thick glasses, with one lens covered with sticking plaster.

 

 

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She was not shy, however, seemed accustomed to greeting strangers, and was the first to speak. "I haven't seen you here before!" she said in a strange accent. “Are you lost?" Ricky replied, "We are passing by but don't know this area. Can you help us, please?" "Sure, 'cos you're so polite." said the girl. "This is the district of Cowcaddens and there on the hill is my school, Glasgow High School for Girls." Then she added proudly, "It's the oldest girls' school in the whole of Great Britain!" "It certainly looks like it," observed Alicja, "but where are the cows?" The girl laughed. "That's funny! Cowcaddens is just the name of a Glasgow suburb. There haven't been any cows here for over a hundred years!" "The buildings over there look badly damaged," Ricky pointed out. "They were bombed and as it's only one year since the end of the war, not much has been rebuilt yet." Ricky thought, At least we know where we are: in Glasgow, Scotland, and this is 1946 since I know from history that the Second

 

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World War finished in 1945. “Where are the other children from your school?" asked Alicja. “Oh," replied the girl. "I live on the other side of the city and come here to catch my tram," and she pointed to the street in the distance. "The tram takes me to the center of the city and from there I take a bus home to Mount Florida." Ricky thought, 'trams' must be what they call those crazy streetcars! Alicja was surprised, "But Florida is in America!" The girl laughed again, "Well, here in Scotland we have wee Florida, just another suburb of Glasgow, but it's not warm and sunny where I live!" “What's your name, please?" asked Alicja politely and added, "I'm Alicja Elizabeth and this is my brother, Ricky." “I'm Elizabeth, too" said the girl. "I'm 9-years old," she added proudly. "Why do you have one eye covered?" asked Alicja. "My right eye is lazy," replied Elizabeth, "so this is to make it work harder. But it

 

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scratches and the other girls tease me." Ricky said, "You must be very smart to travel on our own so far." "Thank you," Elizabeth was pleased and admitted, “So far I am at the top of my class in all subjects!" Suddenly, she turned towards the street and said, “I must catch my tram now. Why don't you come with me? It will take us to the city center from where you can find your way to wherever you are going!" Ricky and Alicja nodded in agreement and all three started walking together. "You are wearing such fancy clothes," remarked Elizabeth. "You wouldn't have any sweets on you would you?" "The clothes were given to us as a present," Ricky replied. "But no sweets, sorry." Elizabeth looked disappointed, so Ricky quickly changed the subject. "It is rather cold and quite dark here now, you probably like to go to warm places for vacations" he said. "Oh, yes," exclaimed Elizabeth enthusiastically. "I love to go to Rothesay!" Then she looked suspiciously at them. "But why are you asking me all these

 

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questions?" she said. "Tell me more about yourselves instead?" "Well," said Ricky and hesitated a bit. "To tell you the truth – it will be hard for you to understand we came here by magic, from the future, to see you!" "Goodness, why me?" Elizabeth was amazed. "It's no fun living here. I haven't had any decent chocolate for five years!" "I wanted to meet you!" volunteered Alicja, "and hear all about your life as a girl!" "I don't know what you are talking about," said Elizabeth, "and I don't understand the bit about being "from the future" but here is our tram, it will be a long ride, so I'll tell you about my life here!" They boarded a rather rickety old streetcar and all sat at the back, with hardly anybody around them, and Elizabeth told them her story. "When I was a girl of three," she began, "very early in the war – in 1940 – a stray German bomber returning from a raid on the big shipyards near Glasgow, dropped three bombs to lighten the plane, and one of them landed beside the air-raid shelter where we

 

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had taken cover. My little sister, Marjorie, not yet two years old, was killed and my mother was buried alive under a mass of rubble. My father and I, on the other side of the shelter, escaped unhurt even if I was thrown out of the shelter by the blast. The rescue workers said my mother must be dead but my father insisted that they keep on digging – he was sure he could hear her voice. Sure enough she was alive although very badly injured. “She was in hospital for over six weeks and I stayed with my grandmother for three months. She lives in Rothesay on the Island of Bute. She is my dad's mother, a 'real battle axe' my mother says, but I like her very much! “Visits to my Grandmother are my happiest vacations. We travel by train and paddle-steamer to Rothesay. She lives in an old Georgian farmhouse. It is a magic place with a drawing room, in addition to an everyday family room, a huge kitchen, a sun-room, even a carriage house plus acres of garden with gorgeous views of the sea. Visits to Rothesay were such a contrast to the dreary furnished rooms in which my mother and I spent the duration of the war.

 

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“After our home was destroyed in the bombing and with my father away for three years serving in the air force, we became evacuees – refugees in a way – allocated to live with families in the countryside who did not want us but were unfortunate enough to have a spare bedroom! We moved no less than three times! “There was some fun too! We lived in the country and my friends and I played where we could, in the fields with the cows, at the fishing piers building houses out of old herring crates or visiting village fairs. Sometimes, although it was forbidden, we hung around the army camp hoping some American soldier would take pity on us and gave us a Hershey chocolate bar out of his emergency rations. Best of all, once – just once – in that 5-year period I tasted ice-cream! That was when I had my tonsils taken out. A surgeon came down from Glasgow and did 20 of the local kids in an afternoon! The village Tallyman (Italian ice-cream man) was allowed to make a batch of ice-cream to treat the patients. It was worth it! “Also, I remember lots of fun riding with my friend at the back of a carriage to church

 

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and trying to hobble along the street on stilts. In the summer, we would go swimming naked in one of the nearby creeks! “Looking back what really amazes me is that nobody supervised us! My mother was working, as with the men away fighting all women had to, and probably she thought I was safe. In any case, I learned to look after myself! “The worst part of the war was attending the village school. The local kids did not like the evacuees, called us names and threw stones at us. After one stone broke my glasses, my mother decided this was too much and I would have to go to the only other school in the village – a convent. I loved the convent school, the nuns were kind and did their best to protect me from the sneers of the other girls who tormented me – an outsider again. “When the war was over, we moved back to Glasgow but now life is even worse. For over a year now, we've been living in a small apartment in the suburb of Mount Florida – which is like the whole city gray, sooty, bombed-out, and smelly, even the people! “I have a long way to travel to school, it

 

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takes about an hour, and have to go through the worst slum in the city, the Gorbals. Once, I got lost and was terrified that I would never find my way home. The worst though is that in the winter; I go to school when it is dark and return when it’s dark, like now! That is Scotland for you!!! “But, I have acquired city skills! I know how to jump out of a moving bus or tram, how to cross a busy street dodging the traffic, and how to play hide-and seek in dangerous bombed out buildings. I am what they call a tomboy.... But I think we will be moving again soon! My dad said yesterday that he was fed up with the university where he works and that we are all sick and undernourished and that he has accepted a position as professor in far away South Africa! You know where that is? I don't, but he said it was sunny and warm there all the time and guess what I am going to have there first? Yes, a jar of sweets, a whole jar!" Elizabeth was exhausted after this long talk and Ricky and Alicja were just overwhelmed by this little girl's stamina. Alicja thought, Wow, this Elizabeth is great! She seems so grown up! I wish I could be like her!

 

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But her life is tough .... " Her thoughts were interrupted because they arrived at the city center, just next to a park, deserted at this late hour. Elizabeth led them through the park towards a bus station on the other side of it. Ricky wondered what they could do to cheer her up. After all, out of all the time-travel children they had visited, she seemed to have the toughest life! He thought, what does she long for most? Then he had an idea ... Of course! He turned to her and said, "Elizabeth, you may not believe this but just as your grandmother's house was magic to you we have some magic, too. Alicja, get out that Aladdin's Lamp of yours and treat Elizabeth to some candy and chocolate!" "Yes," exclaimed Alicja with delight, "I’ll do that!" And before Elizabeth's wondering eyes, right there in the middle of the empty park, on a dreary evening in Glasgow, appeared a splendid little table full of candy, chocolates, cakes, and hot tea! "Who are you?" exclaimed Elizabeth, half-frightened, half-delighted.

 

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"We are your family from the future!" said Alicja. "And we love you very much!" "Don't ask any more questions," said Ricky. "Let's enjoy the good time together when we can!” And with these words the children surrounded the little table with squeaks of joy and giggles of happiness.

 

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JOURNEY VI

1980 Pennsylvania: From Africa with Love!

After the feast of chocolates and candy, the children were so happy that nobody worried about a possible sore tummy! "That was delicious!" exclaimed Elizabeth. "May I take some home with me?" "Of course," replied Ricky, "as much as you wish but beware of robbers on the bus!" he joked. Elizabeth started filling her pockets quickly. "Home!" called Alicja suddenly remembering how home-sick she was before she decided to visit Granny Elizabeth. "It is time to return home!" "Yes," Ricky agreed. "Our journey re-

 

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living the family tree is just about completed but we will meet you again, Elizabeth, in our time!" "I don't understand that," she replied, "but I will always be happy to see you again. Somehow, I do feel you are a part of my family!" "Thank you for telling us your story, Elizabeth!" said Alicja. "And God bless!" "Good-bye, Elizabeth!" said Ricky. "Don't be frightened but I am going to do some magic." And he pulled out The Ring from around his neck, twisted it three times, and said:

Hocus pocus zalevantus Booyantus blagerantus bzeekus

Take us to our dad’s home in Pennsylvania!

And as before, a little puff of smoke came out of The Ring as if to acknowledge that the command was understood. Elizabeth watched with fascination as a mist started embracing her new friends as well as the magic table, now empty of its delicacies. Soon, they all disappeared and Elizabeth wondered why Alicja and Ricky were so close to her heart and how will she explain her pockets

 

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full of candy to her mother. After all, in 1946, candy in Scotland was only available by ration coupons and her mother had none left. In the meantime, as the last of the green mist dissolved at their feet, Ricky and Alicja looked at one another. "What happened?" asked Alicja. “Our spell verse seems to have worked," replied Ricky. “We must be in Pennsylvania." "Why, you agreed we must go home," lamented Alicja. Ricky shook his head. "No, not yet. We haven’t visited Dad when he was my age. Remember, we were looking for our family roots and he talks about it all the time. Let’s see what he was like as a nine year old and what he knew about our family then." "Alright, just where are we now?" asked Alicja. They both looked around. They were standing in a lush forest, which seemed like a nature park, and saw the back of a house with a raised deck. The whole place was decorated with American flags and ribbons of red, while and blue. "This must be our Dad's home when he was my age", said Ricky. "I remember seeing a

 

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picture of it in Grandpapa’s photo album. This is College City, Pennsylvania. Grandpapa and Granny settled here after they emigrated from Africa. But why all these decorations?” Suddenly, they heard a voice: “Hey, you there, surrender before our mighty fort!” They looked around and, sure enough, on their left was a neat-looking fort, constructed from tree logs, with a head sticking out of it. “Are you coming to help us clean after the party?” the voice continued. Ricky thought quickly to himself, He won’t believe us about our time travel. Better pretend something else. “Sure, will be glad to be of use.” replied Ricky. “What are your names?” asked a boy jumping over from the fort. Ricky introduced them. “I’m Ricky, this is my sister Alicja. And yours?” “I’m Steven,” said the boy coming out of the fort. “I’m guarding the fort while my big brothers are helping mom and dad to do Saturday chores and clean the house after the party. “How was the party?” asked Ricky. “Oh, it was a lot of fun and a big deal for

 

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our family. We celebrated becoming American citizens, and just on my 9th birthday at that!” “Congratulations!” exclaimed Alicja. “Where did you live before you came to Pennsylvania?” asked Ricky. “We lived very far away, in Africa,” replied Steven, “but that was five years ago so I don’t remember it well but yet I have very happy memories.” “Where in Africa? It’s a big continent!” Rick wanted to know. Steven smiled, “Well, how is your geography? It was a British colony called Rhodesia when I was born there, now it is known as Zimbabwe.” Alicja felt lost but, suddenly, a smiling lady came on the balcony and called with an obvious British accent: "Tea-time, Steven, and bring your friends along! Cookies anyone?" Everybody raced to the kitchen. They talked a lot while having tea and munching on cookies because the guests wanted to know what life was like in Africa. Ricky thought: Strange, nobody asked how we had arrived here nor who our parents were. They just have assumed that we are the

 

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neighborhood kids! "There was no television in that part of Africa until 1974," explained Steven's mom. “But there were computers in the research institute where my husband and I worked. However, even today in 1980, to have a personal computer there is rather rare." Ricky thought: She said today is 1980. So, now we are 34 years back in time! Alicja thought: If little Steven will become our father, than this lady here must be my future Granny Elizabeth. This is weird! We just met her as a little girl in Scotland. Then she asked: “My name is Alicja Elizabeth, I wonder what is yours, please”? Steven’s mom smiled: “What lovely names you have! As a matter of fact, my name is also Elizabeth!” ”Wow”, was all Alicja could say and looked with fascination at Steven’s mom as she cleared the table and left the room. Ricky was curious about other things. “So what did you do for fun in Africa, Steven?" he asked. “Were wild animals running around in the streets there?” Steven laughed. "No, no wild animals in

 

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the streets. We saw them in the zoo! We lived in a nice home. We played soccer and cricket in our garden, went swimming with friends, rode bicycles and went to the movies!" "Explain cricket." asked Ricky. "It's an insect, silly," said Alicja. "Everybody knows that." "He is talking about a game, Alicja," said Ricky. "Don't be a goose!" Steven smiled. "Actually, cricket is a bit like our baseball here. I could show you how we play it." So the children went out to the front of the house where an open space was available. Ricky looked around and thought, I remember seeing this house and garden in Grandpapa's photo album. It's weird. Also, Steven looks exactly like that in the pictures but he is so much more fun to be with! Hm, it's hard to believe that Steven grew up to become my father; he wouldn't understand if I told him. As Ricky and Steven debated whether to play cricket or soccer, Alicja proposed a different game in which she could be included: a hide and seek in the forest behind. This was good fun for all but after a while Ricky

 

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thought: Wait, I didn’t come here to play. I’m supposed to find out what my father was like as a boy. I better do something about it. During a break in the game, when everybody collapsed on the grass, Ricky saw his chance. “Do you like living in Pennsylvania” he asked. “Yea, now is OK but our biggest shock in coming from Africa was the climate. We had never seen snow before, much less three feet of it like here! But now, I love the snow, whether for skiing or snow ball fights.” Then he laughed and continued, “In fact it was my Scottish mother who turned out the best teacher on how to sled in snow. We found an old sled in the woods and experimented with sledding on a nearby hill. Well, my best fun still has something to do with snow and ice!” “Well, we don’t have much free time on school days. Do you?” “Yea, not so much”, was the reply. “We have lots of homework to do because our parents check on it and even give us some more, and we have after-school sports to practice. When I’m free, I spend a lot of time building

 

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plastic models. They range as from Space Shuttle to ships to model cars. And I need to practice playing my clarinet!” “What sports do you practice?” “I play hockey in the winter and soccer in the summer. In between we play ‘Ultimate Frisbee’! I am a wing catcher, and very good at

it. Everybody wants me on their team,” he conclu-ded with pride. Ricky was intrigued, “I am not familiar with that game; I know how to throw a Frisbee though.” “Well, it’s nothing more but a kind of football sport but played throwing a Frisbee

instead of a ball. It’s fast and a lot of fun!” Alicja interrupted, “Do you have to help your mom with house chores?” “Not really,” replied Steven. “But we

 

 

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have our duties and must observe the rules.” He smiled, “Our main duty is to walk the dog and collect his poopies around the garden.” “Yuk,” said Alicja. “We don’t have to do that! Our dad takes care of it while he walks our dog. He says it relaxes him after his work day.” “Well,” said Steven. “What does he do?” “He is very smart,” said Ricky proudly. “He works for the Boeing Company as a rocket scientist and has lots of people working for him.” Steven was impressed, “He must be highly educated, like a professor, right?” “Well, yes, he has a doctorate from Stanford University.” “My dad also has a doctorate and is a professor of engineering at the university here,” Steven said proudly. “He just won a reward as the best teacher.” Alicja wasn’t interested in what the boys discussed. She interrupted, “Tell us about those rules in your house?” "Dinner rules," laughed Steven. “Mom’s rule is intelligent conversation, so all of us take turns to come up with an interesting topic of

 

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our choice, and introduce it well. Dad's rule is that you must behave well at dinner-time, so if you drop your knife or fork on the floor, you are required to eat on the floor after everybody shouts: “On the floor!" This may not sound so bad but as our dog is always hunting for scraps under the table, between fighting him off and trying to eat, you sure learn not to drop your fork again!" Alicja giggled. "Your dad has funny rules! Steven interrupted their discussion, “I just remembered that I must show you something in the house. Let’s go!” They returned to the room where they had the tea and Steven walked to a large bookcase and pulled out what looked like two thick photo albums. His mother saw them, smiled and said, “This is Steven’s hobby, introduced by his father. Steven is an excellent photographer and an avid collector of family photographs and records.” This was music to Ricky’s ears and he couldn’t believe his luck. He thought, Now we can learn more about our ancestors. Aloud he said, “Yes, please show us your collection, Steven, I am very interested as this is my

 

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hobby, too!” “That’s great,” said Steven. “Let us start by looking first on this chart in my Album number 1.” He spread a double-sheet to reveal a family who-is-who chart and continued. “This is a box chart listing the dates, but also peoples’ education and occupations. These last two details are seldom shown on family trees. OK, here we are, me at the bottom with my brothers, as the youngest generation while higher up are my dad and mom. He was born in Poland but his mother was Austrian. My mom was born in Scotland. I show you their wedding photo later." He turned the page and pointed to a large photograph, “This is my grandfather Taddy; he was Polish and he lived in Galicja, then a Polish province of the Austrian Empire. It was he who had the coat-of-arms that you see on the next page, but the family was very poor. However, he was very smart and became the headmaster of a local school and married an Austrian girl, my grandmother Alicja. I never met her because she died tragically very young but grandpa Taddy came to visit us in Africa."

 

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Alicja interrupted, "Your grandmother had the same name as mine; what a coincidence!” "Very interesting indeed," said Steven’s mother, "Alicja is a lovely name – if we had a daughter, we would name her so. And here on the wall is a portrait of the beautiful Alicja and her father Hugo, both of whom hailed from Vienna, Austria!" “Excuse me,” interrupted Ricky. “But how all those people from such different countries led you to Africa and then to America?” “Well, you are asking a key question, Ricky,” said Steven’s mother. “It leads us directly to our identity, who we are, to our dreams for the future and how we use our talents and opportunities in life. My husband and I believe that we must guide our children to live in the best country, give them the best education and choose the best objectives for the future. Actually, all these ideals were in our family for generations; at least in the five generations we know well going back to our patriarch Hugo. He was determined to get the best education by studying hard and passed these ideals to his daughter Alicja, insisting

 

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that being well educated is the most valuable treasure that nobody can take away from you. And he looked for opportunities to put this education to the best use. Alicja continued this approach and passed it on to her only son and my husband Marek who became a world famous professor and expert in his field of mechanical and civil engineering.” “But fate also played a role in providing opportunities for advancement. We were the war children in Europe, my husband and I, though living in different countries, with different religions and of different cultures. When both our countries, Scotland and Poland, were devastated economically by 1945, and Poland even literally in ruins, fate and an opportunity led our poor families to relocate to British colonies in Africa, where – after the war – hard-working and well educated people could make excellent living. Thus my husband and I happened to meet at the best university in Africa, in Johannesburg. Once we married and our sons were born, we decided on the best course for our sons, and this had to be America!” Then she added smiling with pride, “In

 

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fact, our sons are unique in this respect: They are truly African Americans of Polish and Scottish origins! ” “Wow!” exclaimed Ricky and Alicja at the same time. “Why is America so important and the best?” “Well,” replied Steven’s mom. “Those of you born here in this country may not realize how lucky you are and you take many things for granted! But for us, who lived in other countries and saw war, poverty and hunger at first hand, America is truly that star in the sky where everybody wants to live and have the best chance for freedom, opportunity and being judged on merit. So, for the sake of our children, and also ourselves, we decided to look for ways to come to America and become American citizens.” “Was that difficult to achieve?” asked Ricky. “It just needed courage, determination and looking for an opportunity. In our case, this was possible because at the time America was opening its doors for highly qualified engineering professors, in specializations which the country was lacking (geo-engineering

 

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design), and my husband just fit the bill so we were actually invited to come to America and were awarded immediate permanent residence, so called “Green Card”. Then all we needed was to live here for five years and become American citizens after passing the citizenship exam. For us, that was a major achievement and that’s why we had such a big party to celebrate yesterday.” “So, do you have any special plans for Steven?” asked Alicja. “Sure”, smiled his mother. “The world is open for him, he must study hard, obtain a doctorate like his father and then – it is all up to him! You agree, Steven”? Steven blushed a bit, “I guess so, I know my Dad always has a plan so there is one for me and I am grateful. But I like studying anyway so I’m happy to be an American.” “Finally, one thought, children,” and Steven’s mom looked serious, “All of us must find out who we are, our identities and dreams, and understand where we came from, so that we can appreciate better the role of our ancestors and learn from them! Ricky was impressed hearing these words

 

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and somehow felt at home with Steven and his mom. Aloud he said, “Thank you very much for this explanation. I now see how useful and important those photo albums are. My dad is also an album collector and he got me interested in his hobby. But this is more than just a hobby; it is the source of information about our roots and our identities. Isn’t it so, Ma’am?” “Beautifully said, Ricky,” she replied and continued. “But you have not said much about your own family. What do you think, Alicja?” “Well, I’m sorry, Ma’am, but I need to find a bathroom first, please?” “Of course, I’ll show you where it is.” When the two left, Steven said. “It would be a lot of fun to visit the old countries from which our ancestors came. Don’t you think so?” Ricky agreed. “Yes, that would be cool. Maybe one day we could even travel together. Hey, Steven, you build rockets; when you grow up, maybe you can build one that can time-travel to meet our ancestors! What a dream, that would be fun!” Just then Alicja returned with Steven’s

 

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mother and cheerfully proclaimed, “I just realized, Ricky, that we are very late to meet our parents, so we must be going now!” “Yes,” Ricky quickly agreed. “I forgot, sorry, perhaps next time we will tell you our family story which is also quite complicated. So, thank you, Ma’am, for your hospitality and thanks Steven for the fun together.” “Yes, see you soon!” exclaimed Alicja. “We know our way through the woods!”

 

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JOURNEY VII

Magic in the Air: Home at Last!

The mist dissolved as Ricky and Alicja found themselves in none other than Ricky's own room. "We are home!" exclaimed Alicja. "So long, Pennsylvania!" "Hey, look who's here!" Ricky called out. "Adam, it's you!" Adam was pleased to see them and said smiling, “I'm so glad to see you back! Hey, what are those fancy clothes you are both wearing? What have you been doing?" Alicja replied proudly, "We were visiting my Granny Elizabeth in Scotland!" "Oh, really?" asked Adam. "But I thought your Granny lived in Pennsylvania."

 

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"Yes," said Ricky, "but that was in a different time!" "This is so confusing," complained Adam. "I still don't know why you disappeared except that it all started with Alicja blabbing a verse or fiddling with The Lamp." Alicja was indignant. "I didn't fiddle with anything. I just said a rhyme!" Ricky said, "That was the rhyme that made us time-travel using the magic Time Book." He paused and then continued, "And we did that because we wanted to journey down our family tree into the past to see how the previous generations of boys my age lived." "And the girls, too!" Alicja was quick to correct him. "All right," said Ricky. "We wanted to observe how the boys and girls of our age lived and played in various generations before us. It’s called ‘re-living our family roots’. It was a long and quite a tiring trip but it was worth it." Adam looked at the clock on Ricky’s desk. “Wait a minute. What do you mean ‘a long trip’? I remember this room when you left and this clock" and he pointed to it. “You know, just by chance I glanced and it was 2:33 pm. Look, it is

 

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now 2:34 pm! How is this possible?” "Yes, that is weird." said Ricky." We have traveled so far and done so much ... and hardly any time has passed?" “There must be a big time difference between here and Europe?” suggested Alicja. "Anyhow, what did you find out?" asked Adam. "We compared the life of five generations, that is, ours with four others, and for that we time-traveled down our family tree, 122 years into the past!" "Wow," exclaimed Adam, "that's weird! Were those other kids, I mean .... your family, .... were they cool back then?" "It was really fascinating and we've learned a lot," said Ricky. "When our dad and our grandfather were kids my age, they did not have a room of their own and hardly had any toys! But they didn't need any because they played outside all the time. Also, they didn't have TV in Africa nor in Poland and certainly no computers." "No TV?" Adam was shocked. "They must have been totally bored." "No, they weren't," said Alicja. "They

 

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read books and their parents told them lots of stories." "Also," continued Ricky, "when grandpapa and his dad were boys they were very poor. So poor they lived in houses that didn't even have toilets or running water. They had to go to an outhouse, just like in the cowboys' times!" "I went to the outhouse too!" interrupted Alicja and giggled. Ricky was serious, "They were poor but they were very happy!" "So?" asked Adam. "So," replied Ricky, "it means money does not bring you happiness, but God's blessings do!" Alicja said, "Our Granny Elizabeth had a tough life as a little girl – she was bombed during the war and also had to travel very far to school on her own. She was a brave little girl!" "Yes," Ricky agreed. "And grandpapa was injured by a stray bullet during the war and did not see his dad during his whole postwar childhood! But our great...great...grandfather Hugo, who was an Austrian, had the best life of all. His family was rich, they had servants and a fine home. But he had to study hard and work

 

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hard. His mother gave us these nice clothes!" "I don't understand," said Adam, "you told me your family had a Polish coat-of-arms, so how come your great.. .. whatever ... grandfather was Austrian and your Polish grandfather was poor. Poor people don't have coats-of-arms." "In Poland they do," explained Ricky. "People there became knights because they were brave and not because they were rich!" "OK," said Adam. "That's cool. So who is where on that family tree of yours? Show me and maybe I will understand whom you have visited!" "Sure," said Ricky, "Grandpapa compiled a family tree for our family and we also have a family history book! Here it is," and he pulled down a large book from a shelf and unfolded a chart. "Help me spread it out, Alicja," he said, "as I explain it to Adam." "Now look here," he began, "this is my family tree." Alicja interrupted, "our family tree!" "OK, this is our Family Tree. Alicja and I are at the top of the tree. The dates here are

 

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when we visited our four ancestors." "Now, one generation older is that of our dad Steven and our mom. So, we visited our dad as a boy in Pennsylvania, going back 35 years!"

 

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"The 3rd generation lower is our Grandpapá, who was born in Poland. He was the little boy, Marek in Polish, whom we visited one year after the end of the Second World War. There we traveled 69 years into the past!" Alicja interrupted, "Here on the tree is Granny Elizabeth of the same generation as Grandpapá. They were married in Africa. Our dad was born there but Granny Elizabeth was born in Scotland. We visited her in Glasgow in a cow place!" She giggled and said, "I'm a Polish Krakowianka girl and a Scottish Lassie! Ha, ha!" Ricky smiled, "OK, Alicja, calm down!" Alicja was not going to be stopped and said, "And I am the first girl born in our family in five generations – Grandpapa said so!" "Now, where were we?" Ricky ignored her. "Oh, so we also traveled back 69 years to see Granny Elizabeth as a girl in 1946." Ricky looked at the chart; "OK, here is the 4th generation lower down, that is, Grandpa's dad Taddy whom we visited 100 years ago. He lived then in Galicja, a Polish province of the Austrian Empire. He could catch fish with his bare hands! Anyhow, it was

 

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he who had the coat-of-arms but the family was very poor. However, he was very smart and became the headmaster of a local school and married an Austrian girl, our Great Granny Alicja." Alicja interrupted again, "I was named after her! What an honor! And Granddaddy Taddy was the Principal of a Girls' school! Yes, Girls! "Yes," Ricky agreed. "Now, here on our family tree, is Great Granny Alicja's father Hugo who is at the 5th level below our generation. We visited him in Vienna, Austria, as a boy our age, which was going back in time 123 years!" Ricky sat back looking at the chart and concluded, "So, all in all, we have here five levels on our family tree and we time-traveled four generations into the past!" "Wow," said Adam. “This is cool. But – wait! – what are those crazy scribbles here at the bottom of your chart?” “This, Adam, is the name of our family in the old Egyptian language! They are called hieroglyphics. Our grandparents brought it from Egypt; it looks great on the family tree.

 

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‘Domus’ means ‘Family’ in Latin. Hey, why don’t you ask your parents to de-cipher these letters!

“Hm, maybe,” said Adam. “But I understand your trip now and sure will ask my dad if we have a family tree." "Good idea," said Ricky. "Tell him you want to re-live your family tree. You will hear lots of good stories on the way!" "Well," Adam hesitated, "Tell me what story you heard that amazed you most?" "The Twardowski Story!" exclaimed Ricky and Alicja together and laughed happily. “He lives on the Moon,” added Alicja. Adam just shook his head in disbelief. "OK, here goes the story," started Hugo:

"Once there was a nobleman, Sir Twardowski, who spent all of his money on the pleasures of life. He thought for a long time about finding a way to get rich again without working. Finally he went

 

 

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out to look for the Devil. Of course, anyone who seeks the Devil is sure to find him! "Ah, Mr Devil," said Twardowski, "what will you give me for my soul?" The Devil laughed. "I get the souls of many people for nothing," he said, "but I will give you all you want – for a short time only." "Hm," Twardowski told the Devil, "I have been planning a trip to Rome. You must agree not to take my soul until I am in Rome." The Devil argued but he finally agreed and made Twardowski to sign a contract using his own blood for ink. The contract said that Twardowski would get whatever he wanted, and when he was in Rome the Devil would get him. But after the Devil signed his name as Mephistopheles, Twardowski said, "Now I have changed my plans. I will never go to Rome, so now I will live for ever!" The angry Devil had to keep his bargain and Twardowski annoyed him day and night with all sorts of orders. His favorite demand was to ride upon a giant rooster! And Twardowski had

 

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become rather fat because he loved lots of kielbasa and pierogi to eat and lots of piwko (beer) to drink, so he was quite a sight to see, traveling about on his magic rooster with a great moustache and a bag of Devil's gold, wasting money and boasting to everyone that he had outwitted the very Devil himself. However, nobody can cheat the Devil for long. One day, he invited Twardowski to a restaurant where the food was wonderfully good. When Twardowski had eaten his fill, the Devil said, "I am glad that you enjoyed your dinner because it was your last." Then he pointed out the window to a sign on the front of the restaurant. In those days, as today, hotels and restaurants had names, and this one was called, "ROME". Twardowski knew then that he had been tricked. He was in "Rome". A nobleman must always keep his word though, so Sir Twardowski did not struggle when the Devil grabbed him like a sack of grain and dragged him up through the chimney on his way to Hell. As they flew through the star-filled sky, taking a route to meet Lucifer on the

 

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Satan's Star, when they were over the Moon, Twardowski felt truly sorry for his useless life. He wanted to pray but could not remember any prayers, so he sang a little holy hymn his mother had taught him. To Twardowski's surprise, the Devil couldn't stand the hymn and suddenly vanished. Now Twardowski found himself falling through space! By the good fortune, he landed on the surface of the Moon, where he remains to this very day, with no good times to enjoy and no one to whom he can boast of his cleverness. But if you look carefully at the Moon on a full-moon night, you will notice that it is smiling because Twardowski is happy that he escaped the Devil and hopes that one day God will forgive him for his sins!"

"Wow," exclaimed Adam, “what a great story! And the lesson is obvious: don't waste your life and never ask the devil for help! Well, I must go home now," he added. "See you guys tomorrow!” Adam left and Ricky turned to Alicja. "Let's take these fancy clothes off – I don't

 

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know how we could explain them to mom." Alicja left for her room and Ricky changed into his jeans. He looked at his Austrian outfit and murmured, What fun that was! Then he thought, When I grow up I will update the family tree and make photo albums, as Grandpapá does, so that my children can see how I live! Wow!

Aloud he said, "Perhaps next time, I will time-travel down my Mom’s family tree!”

Alicja heard him in her room and called out, "Can I come with you, please?"

"Cool," said Ricky.

 

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EPILOGUE

What happened to our 9-year old heroes after they grew up

HUGO went on to a specialty high school preparing him for government service and continued his studies at an advanced Lyceum in Vienna. His father insisted that he support

himself so he earned extra money by tutoring the children of rich people. One of his pupils was a lovely Viennese girl, 10-years his junior, Anna, from a fine family. They fell in love and married when she was only 18. They were very happy when daughter Alicia, was born in 1913 in Vienna. Then disaster struck. The First World War broke out in 1914 and by the time it was finished in 1918, Austria was defeated together with Germany and Russia. The old

 

 

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empires were gone and Galicja, formerly part of the Austrian Empire, was a free country -Poland at last! Hugo was not certain if he could keep his job in Vienna but fortunately his grandparents owned a textile factory in Poland and the new government retained previous businesses. So, the family moved to Kraków in Poland and later, Hugo became an inspector at the railways headquarters. Eventually he was promoted to a station superintendent (with an official residence) at a town where Alicja met Tadeusz at her prom. Hugo died in Kraków in 1962 at the age of 80.

TADDY, short for Tadeusz, was a born leader and gifted teacher. He was also very intelligent, and out of the seven children in the family, the only one to receive a college

education. He become an elementary school teacher and later a school principal in the very town where the superintendent of the railroad station was Director Hugo. Tadeusz knew him

 

 

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from social functions; at one of them he met Hugo’s beautiful 16-year old daughter Alicja. He had to wait until Alicja was 21 before Hugo permitted the marriage. Their son, Marek, was born a year later. For nearly three years they lived in a paradise, complete with an official residence, a maid and a nanny. Then everything felt apart when the Second World War broke out, the Germans occupied Poland and the family became refugees. Tadeusz joined the Polish army to fight the aggressors. The family reunited long after the war. Taddy died in 1973 in southern Poland, in the town he was born, at the age of 70. Most of all, Taddy is best remembered for his legacy when he was a small boy, absolutely fearless, and saved his family from starvation during the Great War of 1914 in Poland. The Eastern front of this war between Austria and Russia just happened to be running just across his town. After a few months of fighting, the whole area was devastated, there was nothing for civilians to eat, as the soldiers of both armies confiscated everything, killed farm animals and bombs ruined the fields. And all this was happening during winter. The

 

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fighting took place only during the day, and during the night the soldiers returned to their trenches, while the civilians had to live in underground shelters, such as cellars. Taddy knew that there were Polish units on both sides, tragically even fighting each other, as both Austria and Russia demanded compulsory military service of its men who lived in the occupied parts of Poland. Only the soldiers had food, either what they confiscated or as supplies provided to them. With the front nearby, Taddy’s family had to move to their cellar where they spent the whole winter. Because it was a large cellar, two other families moved in with them. Soon, all supplies of potatoes, on which they lived, were exhausted. But Taddy was the smartest of all, also fearless, and he had an idea. Scrounge food from the soldiers on both sides! Everybody absolutely desperate and scared, but Taddy said he was small enough to crawl out of the cellar through a little window that served as the access for delivering potatoes to the cellar for storage. So, whenever the firing stopped in the evening, brave Taddy crawled out through that window and off he went to

 

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the Austrian trenches. The Polish soldiers there felt sorry for him so they loaded him with bread and tins of meat. Sometimes he even got a little chocolate! But that was not all! When all the pockets in his trousers were emptied, he ran out again, this time to the Russian soldiers! They, too, had Polish units and they were impressed with this poor skinny little boy, and they gave him not only bread but also soap and, once, even shoes! But this time, with his pockets full, he couldn’t get through the little window into the cellar! So his mother had to pull him hard and in the process… his trousers fell off. It was very funny as he was standing there half-naked and embarrassed, but very proud of himself. He became everyone’s little hero and all wanted to kiss him in gratitude! He saved his family and friends from starvation.

MAREK completed his high school at the top of the class (as his mother had hoped!) and received a special scholarship to study  

 

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marine engineering at the best technical university in Poland – in Gdansk, on the Baltic coast. He became a shipbuilding engineer and received a commission as a lieutenant in the Polish Navy. Later he obtained a scholarship for graduate research in mechanical engineering at a British university, where he met his future wife, Elizabeth, a graduate student in history and library science. Eventually, he completed his doctorate, became a world-renown scientist and engineer in his field and a distinguished professor at universities in America, Spain and Poland, receiving prominent awards of two Doctor Honoris Causa – the highest distinction in the academia – and funding a Gold Medal of Excellence in Poland for the best graduate student in Geo-engineering. He wrote many books and research papers (some translated into foreign languages), and guest-lectured at leading universities including visiting professorships at Stanford, Harvard and at the University of Cambridge, England. He and Elizabeth raised three sons, who married and provided them with nine grandchildren. One of the sons, was Steven.

 

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ELIZABETH had a distinguished academic career in her own right. She became a historian and an information scientist and her Master’s

dissertation was listed in the catalog of the U.S. Library of Congress. She was the assistant Dean of the Women Residences at the university where they met and where her future husband was a frequent visitor... She won a History Scholarship to Oxford University in England but preferred to marry him instead! They emigrated to the United States in 1977, where she raised their three sons in Pennsylvania while her husband was busy consulting all over the country. An avid gardener, she grew vegetables and fruit to supplement the family budget. Later she created a flower and shrub garden and continued her gardening hobby when they retired to Arizona. Intellectually, over their marriage of 50 years, she edited all her husband’s research publications and textbooks!

 

 

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STEVEN grew up to be a brilliant rocket scientist and aeronautical engineer. He worked for the Boeing Company for many years as a project leader

and directed teams of aerospace researchers on classified defense contracts. Highly educated, both in the United States and on a Fulbright Scholarship in Germany, he obtained a doctorate from Stanford University. He married and became a devoted father of two children, who benefited from their father’s soccer talents engaging him to coach their teams.

RICKY ALICJA

The

End  

 

 

 

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