COBBLED Life

Chapter 1 POLAND It was 8:30 a.m., September 12, 1909 when the knock came on the door of Martin and Paulina Flath’s home in Moszczenica, Poland. The knock that would forever seal the fate of, not only Otto, but for the rest of his family as well. The morning began as it usually did on a regular work day. Martin and his son, seventeen year old Hugo, had already gone to begin the day’s grinding of flour in the flour mill owned by Martin. Nineteen year old Otto, the eldest son, was off to work in a textile mill in Piotrkow. Twelve year old Adolph was off to school in Jarosty with eight year old Teofil in tow. Only Paulina and two year old Olga remained in the house. Olga was sitting on the floor, playing with pots, pans and a spoon while Paulina was busy at the stove stoking the fire and heating water in order to do the weekly clothes washing for her husband, sons and daughter. There was an old wooden tub with a washboard sitting on the kitchen table waiting for hot water, soap and laundry. The clothes would be scrubbed by hand, an all day job. It was hard work but not begrudged by Paulina. Her family was together and Martin brought in enough income from his flour mill to provide a reasonably comfortable life. There was enough money to live on and a house big enough and warm enough to live in. The future looked good. The boys had all gone or were still going to school and they could all read and write in three languages: German, because both Otto and Paulina Flath (nee Hajt) were of German origin and German was their native tongue; Polish because they attended a Polish school which was the language that was used for everyday instruction; and Russian, because Russia occupied that part of Poland in 1909 and the Tsar had decreed it mandatory for all school children to learn to read and write Russian. The knock was loud and abrupt. Paulina put down Martin’s underwear that she had been scrubbing and after wiping her hands on her apron, she opened the door. There before her stood two Russian army officers with sabers by their sides and grim expressions on their faces. One held an envelope. With few spoken words, the officer handed Paulina the envelope and ordered her to open it. With nervous, still wet shaking hands, Paulina opened the envelope, removed the piece of paper and read: “Otto Gustav Flath of Moszczenica, Poland is required to report to the army headquarters in Piotrkow to begin basic training in Tsar Nicholas II’s Russian army. Duration of Service: Two year compulsory Location of Service: To be determined.” With that, the soldiers left and with that, the Flath family’s life would change forever. With trembling hands, Paulina closed the door, placed the letter on a side table, sat down on a kitchen chair, buried her head in her still wet soapy hands and began to cry. What was going to happen to her handsome, beloved, oldest son? All of a sudden, the house which a few hours earlier buzzed with activity and good humor, became dark, lonely and empty. Only Olga’s cheerful banging on the pots and pans with a wooden spoon brought slight comfort to her. She knew that now her life and the life of the rest of the family, would change and she was convinced the changes coming would not be for the better. Slowly, she raised her head, brushed back her hair and began to wipe the tears away with her apron and even more slowly took the envelope from the table, held it close to her breast, looked heavenward and prayed to God. She decided that she would not break the news contained in the letter until the whole family had gathered round the supper table for the evening meal. After making this decision, she hurriedly completed the wash, hung it out to dry and began preparing a special meal. The last person to sit down at the supper table was Martin and when he sat down, Paulina placed the family bible on the table and began to read. “Yea, though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, I will fear no evil, for thou art with me, ........................ Surely goodness and mercy shall follow me all the days of my life .........” (Psalm 23) And with that, she handed the envelope to Otto. Bewilderment covered Otto’s face as he took the envelope, opened it and read the orders out loud for the rest of the family to hear. There was mixed reaction from the others, ranging from pride on Martin’s face, anguish on Paulina’s face, excitement on Hugo’s and Adolph’s faces to obliviousness on Olga’s face. Color drained from Otto’s face as the realization of the contents sunk in and what it might mean to him and his future. He, Otto, was going to be a soldier in Tsar Nicholas II’s army. Two days later, Otto, with a rucksack containing the few clothes he had and his order papers said a tearful farewell to his family and began his journey into the unknown. The road to Piotrkow was very familiar to him, as he walked it every day, to and from work; but on this day, rather than ending his walk at the factory, he would take a different fork in the road and end up at the army recruiting station. From there an army vehicle would transport him and several other recruits to the military basic training camp which was located a few miles outside of Lodz. However, before the trip to the camp there were a few matters that had to be settled at the recruiting station. The intake corporal greeted Otto, checked his papers, sent him to the recording secretary and from there, he was pointed in the direction of the recruitment nurse and doctor where his physical condition would be examined.