BRONISŁAW GRABARCZUK

Class 6
Horodło, 17 June 1948 [sic!]

Fleeing from the front

It happened in 1944. When I went out on the street in the morning, I saw a great number of planes flying overhead. I told my parents that the Soviets had reached this side of the Bug River. The German vehicles started making a noise and the Germans began shooting at the Soviets. A fight broke out. We had already packed everything in the house into bundles, we ran into the field. We dug a shelter in the field and we sat there. Many other people were there as well.

A few minutes later, German projectiles started exploding right next to us. At 8.00 p.m. the German motorized units arrived and started rounding up men. There was screaming and bawling, women and children were crying.

After the Germans withdrew, the Red Army arrived. Everyone was happily returning home, feeling glad that such a powerful enemy had finally been defeated.

Our whole family came home. The house was empty, apart from dead chickens lying in various places. We started making plans concerning the farms which had been brutally destroyed by the Germans. The work aimed at rebuilding our Homeland began not only on these farms, but also everywhere else in the country.