by Dan Mazur
Johanna had lots of siblings to play with and talk to, yet it was Bessie that she adored the most. Some friendships just defy explanation. Johanna cherished animals and Bessie loved the fact that she was getting all of the affection and attention that she never received as a calf. Their bond was both unique and beautiful.
The once neglected little cow was now beginning to thrive. She had more confidence and would try to get close to the other cows. Perhaps jealous of all of the affection that Bessie was getting from Johanna, the other cows started to pay more attention to her as they let her graze next to them. Every time Johanna came to visit Bessie, the other cows began to follow her around hoping for the same devotion. Being a good-hearted kid, Johanna would pet and talk to them as well but always gave Bessie the most affection.
For the first few months at the farm, Johanna didn’t really acknowledge the other two cows, but now she was starting to bond with them as well. She called them “Mommy Cow” and “Auntie Cow”. Best of all, they slowly started to welcome Bessie into their group as they would eat and sleep together, huddling together on chilly nights.
Without knowing it, Johanna’s gentle moments with her pet cow had somehow lead to Bessie being reunited with her mother. She was now a part of a family for the first time in her life. As Johanna prepared to lock up the barn for the night, she said goodnight to Bessie and the other cows and was greeted by a loud chorus of moos. It startled her but she found it funny and laughed all the way back to the house.
Even though everyday was a challenge for the Hinglots to put food on the table for their family, they were all happy. It’s hard to miss something that you’ve never had. They lived a simple existence where family, hard work, and caring for one another were all that mattered. All of the farmers in the area would help each other out and there was a real sense of community in this rural part of Poland.
Everybody was struggling with the daily rigors of farm life, but it was that sense of community that inspired them to help a friend and neighbour. The men usually woke up before sunrise and worked until the sun went down. It was demanding, physical work but nobody could afford to take any days off, even when they were sick or in pain.
The Hinglots liked to host some of the farmers for dinner once a month for dinner. It was what kept this small community so close. They wanted to reward everyone for all of their hard work and show them how much they appreciated them. Mrs. Hinglot and her daughters would work all day making pierogis, cabbage rolls, and other tasty Polish dishes. The house always smelled so good on those days.
The men had worked up quite an appetite and the food that took all day to prepare was gone as soon as it reached the table. After the girls had cleared the table, Johanna would steal a pierogi or piece of bread with butter on it and take it out to Bessie. It was their little secret.
Due to their strong work ethic and the strong bond that they had made with their fellow farmers, the Hinglots began to feel pretty good about the future of their farm. At first they were overwhelmed by the prospect of making a tiny farm with three cows and four chickens successful. They knew that they would never be wealthy but they were happy, healthy, and had a roof over their heads, and that’s all that mattered to the Hinglots.
The rest of the animals on the farm were deeply devoted to Johanna who had formed her own tiny flock. They followed her everywhere she went even trying to enter the house before being shooed away by Mrs. Hinglot’s broom. Who needed a cat or a dog when you had cows and chickens as your pets? Everyone was in awe of how obedient the animals were around Johanna. Animals are good judges of character and certainly they could tell that Johanna had a big heart and deep feeling of love and devotion for them.
Despite all of the recent good fortune his family had been blessed with, Mr. Hinglot had a feeling that it wasn’t going to last forever. Something was bothering him but he just didn’t know what it was. He didn’t really understand why he had this feeling but it managed to prevent him from getting to sleep some nights. Perhaps he was so used to having to fight so hard for everything he got that he wasn’t used to this newfound success? Or was there more to this feeling than even he realized?
It was life as usual for the family over the course of the next few days. Everything was peaceful and calm. Mr. Hinglot continued to spend his days toiling in the fields with his fellow farmers. Mrs. Hinglot and girls remained hard at work around the house. Johanna would usually be found in the barn with Bessie even convincing her Mom to let her sleep there on a couple of occasions.
All of the time that Johanna was with Bessie was starting to work wonders for the little cow’s confidence. The once shy cow was no longer afraid of anyone including the other cows. Bessie was also starting to grow. She was no longer the timid little calf that Johanna first met. She would nudge her way in when it was time to be fed. She continued to follow Johanna around everywhere she went. When you saw Johanna, you were sure to see Bessie close behind.
Johanna had also begun to change as well. With so many kids in the family, it was tough for her to get noticed by her parents and other siblings. For the past couple of years, she tended to exist in her own little world. Now she seemed to be more self-confident and talkative often taking charge when it was time to do chores around the house or work around the farm. She was learning how to cook and would always be singing and giggling. Her mother was very proud of her and smiled as Johanna showed so much enthusiasm when it came to learning to make Polish food.
One summer night, during dinner, Mr. and Mrs. Hinglot were very quiet and didn’t really engage in their usual conversation with the kids. Johanna’s sisters were acting silly and joking at the table which would’ve usually gotten them in trouble with their parents. But this time, the Hinglots seemed oblivious to their daughters’ antics. Something was weighing heavily on the minds of the Hinglots. Johanna could sense it but her sisters clearly didn’t.
The girls helped clean up after dinner before getting ready for bed. None of the girls acknowledged their parents’ behaviour at the dinner table but there was an uneasy feeling in the air as they dressed for bed. As they put on their nightgowns, they heard a loud banging at their front door. It was Mr. Hinglot’s friend Danusz. He was sweaty, short of breath, and looked pale as a ghost.
The girls kept their bedroom door slightly ajar trying to listen in on their parents’ conversation with Danusz. They were whispering to keep the kids from hearing what they were talking about. At times, the Hinglots would raise their voices when they started to become emotional but quickly returned to speaking in hushed tones. The children still had no idea what was going on. What could they be talking about? Why were they so serious?
They wondered if it had anything to do with the farm. The girls really liked living here. They didn’t want to have to move back to the city if that’s what this was all about. Mr. Hinglot saw the girls peering through the door out of the corner of his eye and told the girls to shut the door and go to bed. Mrs. Hinglot got up and walked over to the girls’ room and told them that everything was okay despite the worried look on her face. A few of the girls were able to fall asleep but it took Johanna awhile to get to bed. Her parents looked pretty grim as they talked with Danusz. She thought about going to visit Bessie to lift her spirits but she was too tired. She would just go see her tomorrow morning instead.
The next couple of days were rather dull on the farm. It rained a lot and so everybody stayed indoors. The house was very quiet with the only sound being the rain beating against the roof and windows. Johanna still made her usual daily visit to see Bessie while her Dad worked to fix the barn roof which was starting to leak. They noticed that their parents tended to be whispering a lot to each other and always had a worried look on their faces. A couple of the sisters thought about asking if something was wrong but they didn’t think that they would get a straight answer.
The girls were becoming very restless and were unable to get to sleep right away. The older girls felt an obligation to make the younger children
feel at ease even though they were just as nervous as the rest of them. Mrs. Hinglot could hear the girls talking in their room and knocked on their door. She told them that everything was going to be okay and to try to get some sleep. The oldest daughter, Emilia blew out the candle in their room and the children closed their eyes hoping for a peaceful night. Nobody seemed to sleep very well that night though.
Around three o’clock in the morning, as the children had just fallen into a deep sleep, their mother started banging on their bedroom door and told them that they had pack up all of their belongings. They had to leave as soon as possible. Half-asleep the girls lingered in bed for a few more minutes as they were groggy and startled by being awoken by the loud knocks at their door.
Mrs. Hinglot burst into the room and started pulling out their suitcases and filling it up with their clothes and other possessions. Dazed and tired from a lack of sleep, the kids started to pack their belongings into suitcases and bags. They could barely keep their eyes open let alone understand what was going on.
There were rumours that German tanks would begin rolling into Poland in the coming weeks. They would be
