She is one of the shyest people you'll ever meet. To take her picture you have to be either very fast or really sneaky. To have a conversation with her you have to be family. There is a good reason for it... She was born 64 years ago in a wooden house at the edge of a forest in the south of Poland. No electricity, no running water, dirt instead of floors. The nearest neighbor lived 10 miles away and so her four sisters were the only real friends she had until she became an adult.
She left home at 19 to look for a better life. Heard of a textile company hiring in a town of Głubczyce and got a job as a physical worker. One thing she learned at home was perseverance. She had to convince her father that she could handle both school and working on the farm when he threatened to pull her out of elementary school. She had to walk 3 miles to get to her high school every day. In Głubczyce she was determined to become a designer for her company.
She left home at 19 to look for a better life. Heard of a textile company hiring in a town of Głubczyce and got a job as a physical worker. One thing she learned at home was perseverance. She had to convince her father that she could handle both school and working on the farm when he threatened to pull her out of elementary school. She had to walk 3 miles to get to her high school every day. In Głubczyce she was determined to become a designer for her company.
It came as no surprise to those who knew her, that in 2 years after she arrived there, she became a junior designer and several years later the chief designer for the "Unia Textiles."
Jasia married Tolek, her co-worker, in 1965 and the only thing that was missing in their relationship after a couple of years, was children. As adoption was not very common in Poland in those days, Jasia and Tolek decided to enjoy their life together by frequent travel and dotting on their niece and nephew.
Almost exactly 20 years after their wedding day, Jasia found out she was pregnant. The whole family rejoiced for 9 months and prepared extensively for the arrival of the baby. Unfortunately, the incompetence of the Głubczyce hospital staff led to a tragedy. Jasia and Tolek's perfect baby boy died before he was even born due to human error. A black veil of grief enveloped the family. before Jasia even returned from the hospital all evidence of the expected happy arrival was removed from the house and all conversations avoided the topic. Jasia became even more quiet and withdrawn than she has ever been. She missed family events, crossed the street seeing an approaching acquaintance...
Two years later most of the closest family were shocked to discover that Jasia was again pregnant because this time, she did not reveal her pregnancy for 7 months. She was not taking any risks either. Her doctor summoned her to the hospital two weeks before the delivery date and on May 2nd, 1985 Jasia's daughter Małgosia was born. Life took a happy turn.
For the past 24 years Jasia has been a happy and proud mother, pouring all her love and care into her daughter's needs.
She still needs to be coerced into having her picture taken and often complaints that she doesn't deserve a gift she's given, even on her birthday. But she makes the best Polish potato salad on earth and never serves the same cake twice.
