František Šimon

“We just had a big kitchen and there was a big stove. It was working all day. On one side was the so-called „medenec“ (a copper container for water), there was water in it. It was tapped there, so there was hot water or boiling water all day when you needed to wash your hands for example - no boilers before, nothing like that. And there was actually the hot water, so you took a tin mug of water, put it in the sink, washed. Or if you needed to give water to the calves when they were small, or when the pigs had little piglets, just something warm when it was cold - so it was there to reach. And then there was a big stove - and what was on that stove: a stone pot all day, there was boiled milk, there was a ladle next to it and next to it there was a tin container and there was coffee. It had a beak, a lid and there was black ersatz coffee. Well, when someone was hungry or thirsty or something like that - maybe even the “chasa” (young farmers) said, 'Man, look, bring me some coffee.' So, I took a mug, I made it for him. Well, there was… such a glass jar, there was sugar, a spoonful of sugar was taken, mixed, and done.”

"You know, as they said, that cooperatives were formed under the communists. So, I don't know, but people had helped each other in agriculture before, during the First Republic. It was the Jews who bought something, I don't know what, but the farmers have had built them – there were cooperative mills, cooperative bakeries, farm cooperatives that bought grain from you, and for example sold you seedlings or seedings and all these things. Or even tools, shovels… After all, the farmers, the cooperative - and the machinery cooperative – they established it. All this was actually during the First Republic. And now they came up with a Russian idea. They simply arrested a bunch of people, tore down villages, and shouted to the world that only a cooperative idea. And this one - what? Never mind, it's not worth to talk about it."

"Every month, you had to submit a paper, saying what you own and where. And I came from school once and I saw that it was a bit messed up here. I say, 'What was going on here?' - 'They were checking it here.' The Gestapo came with a governor from Mladá Boleslav. They arrived at the municipal office. In front of their car were, as usual, machine guns riding on a motorcycle, followed by the governor and some other Gestapo. And they came to the municipal office – it was opposite to our house - so you know, when something like that happened here, people were right away: what will happen? Well, they came there, that they were just going for a check and they would like to see it, so the governor looked at them and pointed out a finger. So, they put the papers in there: Šimon. He took the 'Šimon' and they came to our yard. The gate was open, it didn't even close there. He showed the paper, they had an interpreter there. He said, 'There will be an economic inspection at your place.' So, they took the paper and firstly went to the barn, counted the cows – all done by the governor. They counted the cows, that corresponded, then the calves - Dad was fond of it. And all the pigs - he calmly climbed into the piggy bank, even though there was no smell. And a couple of horses: 'Where are they?' - 'They're in the field.' OK. Simply everything, even as there was prepared food for the evening, so actually they had such… and stabbed it there if there was no grain stored somewhere. The grain that was on the pantry, so it was weighed and there was a sign, it was written how much there is. He looked at it. It corresponded. Yeah! And then they just did the check – even there, where we slept, they just came there, picked up the duvets, looked around everything - then they simply saluted, thanked and left. And it happened twice like that. So, it probably wasn't very funny to play with. It was such a surprise, really.”