Problems with Jakub and Wladek!
Jakubs's story that appeared in Chapter 9 on page 52 (starting from the top) should be taken away - Not sure about Wladek´s story that follows...! Alumni were the older boys and girls who came as grown-ups to the Orphanage. Wladek was not alone concerning his pro-Soviet sympathies. Korczak was telling Pan Misza that he wants to finish coming to these alumni meetings, as alumni are becoming more and more hostile.
The pages in each Chapter are at least 1, 2 and and at least a half. I do not want to have any of the chapters to end with just a few lines, as I want "photopages" to stay separate.
In 1970, I met a group of my former pupils in Israel – the "children from Krochmalna." Naturally, they were no longer children. Each had gone their own way, but all had grown into brave, honest, hard-working, and socially oriented people.
I managed to visit some of them in their homes, meeting their children and grandchildren. The bond that unites these "children" of ours is (and this is no exaggeration) generally stronger than that between siblings. They don't always agree on many issues, but they share a keen interest in each other, always ready to help each other. They participate in all the Korczak events organized in Israel. They are also extremely interested in how the Korczak movement is developing around the world. All this has its own significance. Doesn't it?
How I would gladly tell the Doctor about this, without questioning his convictions about the powerful influence of genetic laws. In any case, I would emphasize that the early grafted wild trees produced noble varieties of fruit. So, he achieved something of immense value.
The meetings with two former educators from the Orphanage, Józek Arnon and Jakub Czuk, were pleasant and moving. Both, like relics, kept the Doctor's handwritten letters written to them during a time when they were struggling in their new circumstances, in what was then Palestine, when they missed them, when they likely sought his advice. Korczak tried to lift their spirits, pointing out the future. In one of the letters, I read a laconic note that shocked me. Just a few words in the Doctor's hand: "Misza is staying until next year." These words, which weren't addressed to me, felt like a greeting from the Doctor. If Korczak mentioned my decision to stay at Krochmalna Street in a letter meant to be sent to another country, to another part of the world, it means he considered it worthy of attention. Thank you for that, Doctor!
I am amazed at how Janusz Korczak, burdened with so many activities, responsibilities, and plans for his extensive, multifaceted career, still found time for correspondence. He wrote letters to people close to him who were far away, who initially struggled and faced difficult problems. It seems to me that even today's readers, not just those fascinated by Korczak and facing intractable problems, can benefit greatly from his pedagogical insight, encouraging them to "give birth to their own thoughts in pain," because such are, after all, the most important. Despite the cataclysms of history and my own bitter experiences, how glad I would be to repeat with the Doctor that "people are good"... With unwavering conviction, however, I maintain that thinking not only had a rich past but also a tremendous future.
If we – Korczak's followers – succeed in disseminating the Doctor's works, his concepts, and pedagogical solutions, and adapting his thoughts to the new era, and at the same time, in different countries and in different languages – we have a right to well-deserved satisfaction. Korczak's thoughts have not aged, even in our commercialized, post-industrial era, and can often act as a catalyst in unleashing goodness and true humanism. I recently hosted Aronek, whom we should now call Aron. I listened to a long story about his life. He fled Poland from the German fascists to the USSR. There, of his own free will, he traveled quite far east to work in a mine. He wasn't afraid of any work, and he wanted to be useful. After a while, he loudly demanded workers' rights, guaranteed by the constitution. Soon, no longer willingly, he ended up in a Soviet labor camp, sentenced to 10 years. He dug the earth, cleared forests, was also a bricklayer, a tailor, a cook... He was surrounded not only by political prisoners but also by ordinary criminals. Our conversation turned to the Orphanage, which Aronek recalled with incredible warmth. "We were fortunate to know Korczak personally; others can now benefit from the Doctor. From his wise books, perhaps a little from our memories."
- Right, Mr. Misza?
I'll also mention my last conversation with Szymek – once
Mrs. Stefa's favorite – a kind, gentle man. He is grateful to fate that he ended up on Krochmalna Street. He speaks of the Doctor with love and reverence. He himself
is no longer young. He still works in the construction industry, and when he talks about it, he draws his thereminology from there:
"You see," he says, "Korczak provided the most important thing: a good, solid foundation. Even if the house burns down or is demolished, you can always build a new one on such a foundation."
- The foundation – the most important thing!
Chapter 15