Joan Janzen
for The Clarion

Kindersley resident Piotr (Peter) Strzeleck experienced the culture shock of transitioning from communist Poland to our nation of Canada in the fall of 1993. Though his homeland had already been free of communist rule for several years, Rev. Peter couldn’t recall any dramatic changes that took place as a result.

Rev. Piotr (Peter) Strzelecki, in his office at St. Paul’s United Church, holds a Ciupaga (shepherd’s walking stick/axe).

“I was born in 1970 and experienced the tail end of communism.” he explained. “There was the good, the bad, and the interesting and funny.” For instance, he had to go halfway across town to an outlet store, where there was a delivery of toilet paper, and each person could buy twelve roles on a string and then chase home so no one would steal it. “And I remember being told to not tear off too much.”

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He clearly remembers empty shelves in the store, with only bottles of vinegar available. His parents would wake him up very early so he could stand in line at 4:00 a.m. at the neighborhood butcher shop. When the store opened his father would relieve him, and then buy whatever he could, since as a child, Peter could have easily been cheated.

Although he recalls coupon cards, which permitted each family to buy a certain amount of meat per month, he also remembers his mother being very generous, and people in their apartment building being neighborly. “It wasn’t uncommon to be sent to someone’s door to borrow a cup of sugar.” Throughout half of the 120 apartments in the building where he lived, Peter said he referred to half the older women and men as aunts and uncles. “People felt closer together because we didn’t have much. Living out reality was something people had in common.”

“My father was an engineer and had the luxury of travelling abroad. He would bring me a small pencil or pencil holder for school; that was something no other kid would have, it was a luxury.” In spite of the family’s lack of funds, his parents made a conscious choice of providing a happy childhood for him and his siblings, enjoying regular family hikes and walks in the hills.

Peter recalls the period from 1981 to 1983 when Poland experienced martial law. “We lived in a town at the far end of Poland and didn’t get the brunt of what martial law looked like, with tanks on the streets and such.” But he does remember seeing buildings where officers lived, guarded with machine guns. His mother received special passes from the hospital where she worked, so she would be able to be present for an emergency after curfew.

At the age of 20 he entered a Roman Catholic monastery where he studied philosophy (he parted ways with the Catholic Church in 1999). Shortly after entering the monastery he recalled, “I was picked up by the militia one time, given a beating, and told it was some material for my sermon.”

So it was completely understandable that when the opportunity to leave was presented to him, Peter took it. He said the decision was a “no brainer”, as we say here in Canada, and culture shock soon came into play upon his arrival in Saskatoon.

“I remember seeing a mall for the first time in my life. The experience of free refills of coffee at a restaurant was shocking; I couldn’t believe the refills were free! The idea of an all you can eat buffet was unbelievable!” (Even now, in Poland, customers at an all you can eat buffet fill their plate one time only.) “There was food I had never heard about like peanut butter, Cheese Whiz and white square bread.” And after all these years, he confesses, “I still have a fear of an official across the desk, because when I was growing up those government officials had the power to deny you this or that.”

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