Dear Friends,
The situation with the refugee crisis in Poland is very fluid and dynamic. Things are changing every day. Those serving the refugees must adapt continually to the changing circumstances.
With Victor, a Ukrainian refugee who is living alone near the refugee shelter in Szczecin
With the help of my host family, and my contacts in the Kana Theatre group, I have been able to piece together some simple ways to participate in this fluid situation. I have been teaching conversational English, offering music with my guitar, helping with carpentry projects, and helping to distribute food to refugees who have already found temporary places to live. Today I sat outside a food distribution center and sang songs for the Ukrainians who were queued in a long line waiting to receive their packages of food. People just like me and you. Young families and older people - mostly women and children. I keep thinking this could be me with a slightly different turn of the wheel of fortune.
I am being asked to sing quite a bit, which is a good way to communicate when I don’t speak the languages. But it also pushes me outside my comfort zone. I have always enjoyed playing, but not “performing”, so I have to remind myself that these folks are much further outside their comfort zone than I am. Music is a simple, universal source of pleasure, so I have allowed myself to be drafted into sharing my music fairly regularly in this situation. I am learning to relax more into this form of sharing. People genuinely seem to appreciate my doing this.
As the flow of refugees from Ukraine slows, I am spending less time at the shelter, and more time with Kana Theatre volunteers, and with a wonderful organization called Mi Gracja, that is now serving the many hundreds of refugees who have found shelter, but lack the daily basics of food and clothing. I can help with the sorting and packing of food, playing music, teaching English, or whatever may be needed in the moment.
Paulina & Szymon Obrychowski
My experience here has been immensely helped by the generosity of my host family, Szymon & Paulina Obrychowski and their children, who have given me not only a comfortable place of daily refuge, but also access to their vibrant circle of friends, and local cultural activities. They are also giving me a wider-spectrum view of the situation in Poland, both currently and historically.
Poland has welcomed its Ukrainian neighbors as fellow survivors of a half century of extreme repression under Soviet rule. The pathways to independence for both countries, and the re-building of functional institutions and economic vitality based on rule of law, have been complex and difficult to achieve. It is their hope that Poland’s robust response to the current crisis in Ukraine will enhance Poland’s standing as a committed partner in the community of democratic nations.
Sending lots of love,
Kurt