CHAPTER 4

Weekends at home

School was all right, but to be able to go home for the weekend was bliss. It was a return to one's roots, where one belonged, where reality could, for a time, be replaced with dreaming, the dreaming of a childhood paradise. Home was removed from the hustle and bustle of city life, away from the bombs and war, and the conflict between Germans and Poles, and more recently the influence of the Nazi party. I cannot remember ever taking homework with me for the weekend. School work and home in Sapowice did not seem to go together.

On Saturday mornings we would take our weekend bags with us to school. We usually had only five periods, finishing about 12.30 pm. Our train left about 1.20 pm, which gave us ample time to catch the tram to the station. The return fare for us students was 1.30 Reichs Mark. All four Tieman's met in the train, almost filling one compartment. The train was pulled by a steam locomotive and its carriages had an outside board to connect the compartments, where the conductor walked along to check tickets. Some carriages had two compartments with an isle connecting the two. This was the compartment which we usually selected for ourselves. There were about five or six carriages pulled by the train, two were reserved for Germans only. It took one hour to go the distance of about 30 kilometers from Posen to Strykowo, where Horst and Bernd lived, and which was also our station.

The train had to pass through seven stations before it reached Strykowo. The stop before it was St þeszew, a small market town, where apart from our butcher and chemist, there was also our German protestant church.

After Stþeszew, when we were in a competitive mood, we would get ready for a race between our cousins and us.

"You will see, Horst, this time we will beat you to the corner of the highway," said Günter .

"No way," came the reply, "our horses are faster, and anyway with Walek and me, I think we can drive faster than your Franz."

"Well, we shall see. Make sure, Dieter, that you don't dilly-dally. Stay here behind me, and let Horst and Bernd go to the other door. When we come near the station, I'll open the door and go out on the runner board, then you come straight after me and then we can jump off the train at the same time."

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