Anna Kowalik:
...I wonder...
Interesting question Anna. First off, wonderful combination of Pan-Slavic heritage.
I'm not quite sure about the present day mutual feelings so I can only offer a glimpse of the past. Back in the early seventies, in times when Serbia was an integral part of Yugoslavia, I had a privilege to venture to Poland on several occasions. Oddly enough, our Yugoslavian (I'm a Serb born in Belgrade in the sixties) elementary schools had wonderful summer and winter vacation programs, and almost every child in school could afford it. Children of white-collar families more so than their blue-collar compatriots. Between ages 9-11 I went skiing in Poland with my school 3 times. Żywiec & Zakopane. Needless to say, I loved it. Venturing to a foreign country does have it's charms for a nine year old boy. Unfortunately, at the time Poland did not do so well and Yugoslavia did. This in turn created a bit of 'superiority complex' with some of our kids and professors. We fully knew the extent of Polish dependency and abuse by Russian rule. Some of us felt sorry for Polish circumstances, some other were thinking 'serves you right for not standing up to mighty Soviets'. Yugoslavia did stand up to mighty Soviets but only with western help. Not to mention that it's much easier to prevent Russian excursion to Yugoslavia half a Europe away, than it was for Poland to defend from a neighboring SSSR. Still, many felt that it was your own undoing and the fact that Poles are Catholic Slavic brothers did not help your cause with Orthodox Slavic brothers. Serbs, throughout history, had quite a few collision courses with their closest brothers from Croatia and Bosnia, once these peoples converted to Catholicism and/or Islam. It's the elephant memory syndrome, Serbs hardly forget. I don't think they ever forgive, unfortunately. We see Orthodoxy as everyone's divine right, and we can't fathom how other nations can't see it. Other nations of course see other religions as their divine right.
Going back to story, Poland was beautiful. People, places, everything. We didn't care much for the food, but now I know better. Things were really scarce back then in Poland. It was a very difficult survival for Poles, yet they seemed to go about it with dignity that I still remember to this day. I remember studying Polish history afterward and I just couldn't fathom what had happened. Here was one of the most glorious nations in Europe, Slavic of all things, with historically great relationship with western world, Germans notwithstanding. We did read Taras Bulba in elementary school as part of mandatory literary curriculum but that book hardly championed Polish point of view. It's really about Kozaks from river Don and their part in Russo-Polish wars back in the, what, 16-17th century.
So I bought numerous Polish knight figurines (God, I remeber falling in love with Polish Hussars perked on their horses with them wings attached on the back, you Poles know what I'm talking about). It still graces my childhood bedroom which I abandoned ages ago. Personally, I was never too excited by the whole Solidarność movement and Lech Wałęsa, but what did I know. Or care. I was hoping Poland would take it's righteous place in European scheme of things. I mean, there are almost 40 million Poles in Poland alone and about a quarter more living abroad. Of which I know a few and have the privilege of being called a friend.
I remember vividly the day we went on excursion (a day break from skiing) to Oświęcim. I've never heard of the name, but we've all been taught about German concentration camps as well as our own (there were concentration camps in Yugoslavia during Nazi occupation, unfortunately the worst were actually ran by a certain Croatian military formations, our own brothers in blood). We went through the town and marched into this field with gated area, somewhere in woods. I read "Arbeit macht frei" and it suddenly dawned on me. I've seen this gate many times in pictures and on TV. I knew Auschwitz is somewhere in south of Poland. They played us documentaries that Allied soldiers got their hands on after camp 'liberation'. Hideous German footage as well. A foreigner such as myself could never feel more Polish than that day. We understood that most victims were Jewish, but they were Polish first and foremost regardless of religion. It was Poland that kindly let them settle in vast numbers in their own country, they shared the same faith for centuries and Poles eventually suffered for it grievously, alongside Jews. No wonder Israel pays special tribute to Poles alone in Yad Vashem.
We visited Krakow and Warszaw on separate occasions. I preferred Krakow. Especially that old Market Square. I went to a monumental church but forgot it's name. It's sort of Krakow's legendary (dare I say Gothic style) cathedral. There were sarcophagi of ancient Polish knights and I used to sit there and reminisce about the glory of these people. I mean, having a sarcophagus/tomb in the midst of a glorious cathedral, that says something about persona. Granted, I wasn't overly religious person, I was more impressed with the deeds these noble knights performed the way I had perceived them (when you're nine or ten you think they salvaged a damsel in distress from the dragon, you really don't think it's an homage to a knight for, say, slaying Muslims...I always found religious wars 'not-so-kosher'; there's always an ulterior motive). Oddly, and I can't explain it to this day, I found Catholic churches speaking to me more than Orthodox. The way they are built and lit. Make no mistake, I am Orthodox Serb and will remain so for eternity. It does humble one's soul nevertheless. We Serbs like to think the Known World owes us, as it were. Or at least, the Western World. They (westerners) live in relative peace due to our suffering at the gates of Islamic enemy war machine. When you grow up you realize it's a 'great unknown'. Things are not always what they seem to be.
I think you will realize by now, Anna, that I feel akin to Polish people. Perhaps my Serbian brothers are unaware of Polish greatness, we're but a child nation waiting to be awaken after many, many centuries of sleep, as if having our finger pricked by a spindle like in that old story of 'Sleeping Beauty'. We have not fully awaken yet, and we're far from beautiful. I have a similar feeling about Polska and Polacy. You have only started to wake after centuries of oblivion.
As my adopted American brothers say: "Godspeed".
"Those who don't know, and they don't know that they do not know, they are stupid, stay away from them."
"Those who don't know, and they know that they do not know, they are children, teach them."
"Those who know, and they don't know that they know, they are asleep, awake them."
"Those who know, and they know that they know, they are wise, follow them."
~ ancient proverb
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