Interview with my grandfather - Józef Szczupak, graduate of the Henryk Sienkiewicz Secondary School no. 1 in Łańcut.

Interview with my grandfather - Józef Szczupak, graduate of the Henryk Sienkiewicz Secondary School no. 1 in Łańcut.

ZC: Grandpa, tell me when did you start and finish our school?

JS: I came to school in 1953 and finished it in 1957.

ZC: That is one year more than your peers, isn't it? What was the reason of it?

JS: You're right, on matura exam (final exam in high school in Poland) I didn't manage to pass math exam, so I repeated it one year later.

ZC: Who is the teacher you liked the most?

JS: Definitely my form teacher - prof. Jan Marszał. He was very kind and always fair in marking students. For us he was not only the mathematician, but also we felt his helping hand all the time. It doesn't mean he was more propitious for us during the lessons. I have to admit that he was an excellent tutor, but he had the best connection with students who liked math and did well in it. Sadly, I wasn't included in this group what is confirmed by my first math matura result.

ZC: Please, tell me more about the lessons conducted by professor Marszał.

JS: As I said before, I wasn't the best in math. Professor used to tell me: "Szczupak, for you math is only playing with blocks". Well, I cannot deny. Not only was I connected with math in school, but also after graduating as in 1967 I married Lidia - a mathematician. Therefore my math knowledge is being checked all the time.

Coming back to the lessons conducted by professor, they weren't something easy, at least for me. You couldn't even look away for a moment because the blackboard was filling up with a lot of formulas and drawings. Tasks were very demanding  (often written by professor on his own). He was even more demanding and hard to be surprised. Despite that fact we didn't feel uncomfortable or afraid of anything. Everyone knew that you had to systemically practise, but it was caused by professor’s authority itself.

ZC: Was there any casual lessons without asking students?

JS: Hmm… I don't remember any such situation.  For sure professor couldn't stand wasting time, what it's confirmed by the fact of writing down the subject in the register during breaks. He used to run into the classroom shortly after the school bell had rung to start the lesson immediately.

ZC: Grandpa, was professor Marszał a good educator?

JS: Absolutely. I'll be always saying that because thanks to him and my wonderful class time spent by me at school was so memorable. Even though he seemed to be harmful and emotionless, he was completely different person when it came to for example excursions.

ZC: How did the excursions look like?

JS: We haven't been traveling that far - mostly it's been hiking. We loved it and now those are one of my favourite memories from school, as we was able to rest and stay in the bosom of nature, what was good not only for us but also for the professor. From time to time he was telling us some anecdotes or even jokes. I wasn't an obstacle to him to solve math puzzles during breaks in hiking.

ZC: You were the participant of the 110 jubilee of our school. Did the school changed since graduated?

JS: Definitely yes - now it's slightly better. I'm surprised by the second part of building and new gym. We can see that the school is being developed all the time but it still has its uncommon atmosphere. When I met my classmates during our 60 anniversary of matura exam I felt like going back in my days. That is the mystery of our school. It doesn't matter how many years have gone and what happened during those years - with graduates of our school you always feel like home and you can always find a helping hand there.

ZC: I think that it is the best summary of our conversation. Thank you my dear grandpa.

JS: Thank you Zuzanka.