Poklosie Page #2

---

This one here,

the one my brother

destroyed or something...

That's another road, further down...

Here, I'll show you...

Almost there.

What do you mean damaged?

He have a car accident?

People say he ripped up

the surface and stole it.

That is, he took it away

somewhere, I'm not sure.

You'd have to ask your

brother or the police chief.

I don't get it. He ripped up

the surface? Was it gold?

Here it is...

I'll be going now.

Next time you talk to Jola tell

her Justyna said hi. Alright?

Sure will, ma'am.

Let me help.

Think you still know how?

Joziu, what's the story with

that road to the old tannery?

You'll get yourself dirty.

You do the cutting,

and I'll throw on the straw.

I have to go to Gurwka later

and get some stuff to wear

until they find my suitcase.

They're not going to find anything.

I'll go with you, though. There's

some business I have to get done.

Why'd you rip up the road?

You're pretty fast there,

looks like you weren't

pushing papers over in America.

I stripped asbestos.

If a Pole has a job it's either

in asbestos or demolition.

No American will do it

but it has to be done,

so they don't bother you too much.

How come they don't want it?

Americans? Well, the Yids have

the construction business cornered,

and they think it's beneath them,

so they let others do the dirty work.

Besides, it's dangerous, and they

don't want their people getting sick.

And demolition work?

They say asbestos gives

you cancer, you know.

Lung cancer.

And what about demolition work?

That's another story.

Well? Aren't you going to tell me?

We have to catch the 2 o'clock bus

otherwise we won't get a ride back.

Have it your way. I came

here to help, you know.

Shouldn't have left

if you wanted to help.

What, you think our

parents died because of me?

They were old. Everybody's time

comes sooner or later, Jzek.

Do the rest yourself since

you're so helpful.

Scram...

I'm very sorry Mister Kalina,

but we can't grant you that loan.

You can't? You don't want to,

that's what.

We'd really like to, but we have

a problem with your creditworthiness.

Look, Manager, there's nothing

wrong with the application.

I want to borrow 50 thousand against

a farm worth 650, what's the problem?

You see, it's not that simple.

To put up the farm as collateral,

you need to have

clear title to the property,

and unfortunately you don't.

So that's it... Well, my brother,

the co-owner of the farm,

is here from America.

He can sign all the papers you need.

Franio, show the manager your passport.

Pleased to meet you,

but this isn't about you,

but about your late father's

title to the property.

You see, he had no right

to transfer it to you

because he obtained it without all

the paperwork, to put it very mildly.

But our father took out

loans in your bank before.

Times have changed, Mr. Kalina.

What do you mean our father's

title to the property isn't clear?!

- He got the land in the agrarian reform.

- Exactly.

I'd suggest you clear

it up at the municipal office.

Won't be open until Monday morning.

Whatcha gonna do?

We have to wait till Monday.

I'm going to the store.

Where you gonna be?

At the bar. I feel like a beer.

Who you root for, hick?

Start or Wisla?

You got a problem?

My problem is I want to

know who you root for.

I always rooted for Lech.

Lech? Lech Poznan?

Nah, Lech Walesa.

Hello. Anybody there?

- I'll scream!

- Jzek... What happened?

I'm fine. Just a bloody nose.

I'll get over it. Got a tissue?

These things never happen here.

I don't know what got into them.

- You know who did it?

- Sure I do.

They work down at the sawmill.

But they never cause trouble.

Your buddy must have said something.

My buddy never says anything.

You want to know?

- We'll come out in mother's field...

- That's right.

Soil's good there,

you plant wheat this year?

Some...

- God almighty... What is that?

- It's the stones.

What stones?

These are the stones I took drom

the roads, and other places, too.

- I brought them here...

- What for?

Dunno. It just seemed right...

- How many are there?

- 328.

- All by yourself?

- Yep.

In our field.

That's why they're still standing.

Where'd you get them?

In '98 when the flood

swept away the main road

we started using

the old tannery road again.

After we cleared it

we found these stones.

During the war the Germans tore up the

synagogue and the old Jewish cemetery.

They used the gravestones

to reinforce the road

from the station to the tannery.

It stayed that way till '55 when

the county laid the new road.

The old one grew over and folks forgot

about the stones. Until the flood came.

I kind of figured it wasn't right...

You got all of them from the road?

No. A lot of them were

around people's farms.

They used them as thresholds,

work surfaces, flagstones.

Filipowski even had one in his outhouse.

Ostrowski used this one as a work table.

And he gave it to you, just like that?

I bought it off him for 300 zloty.

Most of the ones that

weren't on the road I bought.

Filipowski wouldn't sell the one he had

so I took it from his place at night.

- You paid 300 for each of them?

- Depends,

I got most of them for a 100 a piece,

some for 200, some for 80...

Say 200 apiece.

That makes nearly 70000.

Less than that...

Madame Breida, daughter

of Itzak from Kobryn...

Kobryn... Wonder why her

family moved this far?

But it's all in Jewish.

When I was setting them up

I started wondering what they said,

so I learned their alphabet

out of some pre-war books.

It's Hebrew actually...

Jzek...

What do you need all this for?

I was curious, I guess...

- And this hobby of yours...

- It's not a hobby.

I had to, they were human beings...

- Yids? - Jews.

- That's not what I meant.

- What do folks in the village say?

- They say I'm nuts.

Worst thing is, Jola took their side.

Especially when

I started buying them up...

- Well, was I supposed to steal them?

- You might be my brother, Jzek,

but I'll tell you she had a point...

And now I'm stuck with

your wife and kids.

- Bacon?

- Thanks.

- So, what made you do it?

- Beats me.

So many things aren't right

but we live with them anyway because

there's nothing you can do about it.

But I think that some things

are more wrong that others.

It's like, you see a guy lying drunk

in the street you walk on by,

'cause you think 'he's drunk' and

you got your own problems and all...

But when it's a child lying there

you just can't walk by. Understand?

Go on.

The Germans destroyed that cemetery,

I can't help that,

I wasn't even born then.

They paved the road with gravestones,

now that's very wrong,

but I didn't know about that either.

It was only when folks started talking

about covering up that old road with

asphalt, that I thought no way. '

At first I hoped the

county would do something,

but then I saw people

driving up and down the road,

- all happy that's it's nice and even...

Rate this script:0.0 / 0 votes