Božena Kršková

"Back then, before our parents sent us to Vranová Lhota, we always played in the square in front of the station, where we tied goats to a tree and played there. And we found out that there are always trains that are filled up to the last seat with people and those people in those windows, those windows of those carriages were only slightly open and you could see that even in those corridors they were completely crowded, because in that window there was maybe five heads. So we became interested as children and found out that those people were hungry. That they begged, they kept showing that they wanted to eat. So understandably, we told our parents and the parents started bringing the people there bread, that is, slices of bread, because no one could give away much of the little they had."

"Then, when the headmaster started welcoming us and teaching in that first class, a gentleman, dressed all in black, came to the class, exchanged a few words with the headmaster and chose seven students, including me, and led us to other classes. There he gave us some crayons, pencils, crayons and candies, asked us our names and told us to come to this class the next day and not go to the original one we were assigned to. I wanted to show my father what I got, because at that time in the village where I was born, it was not customary for parents to accompany children to school. The children there were completely independent, they came to school alone or with older siblings. So I went to my dad, I told him these things, he didn't like it, so he went to school. And then at home I learned that it was me and other classmates, six others, that we were transferred to a school with German as the language of instruction. My parents did not agree with that and insisted that I return to the original class where the Czech language was taught."