My School Years in Romania (II)

And there were no negligence lawsuits either. Nobody would ever dream of bringing a lawsuit against a school, a teacher, a colleague or the like. There were no such lawsuits period. I remember that once in pre-school we were required to bring penknives and cork to school so that we could carve designs into the bottle corks. Nobody thought anything of it. When I cut my finger deeply and then developed a severe infection that required surgical intervention, I cried but nobody would have thought of holding anybody accountable. It was just tough luck! Something similar happened in first or second grade. We did not have pencil sharpeners and used razor blades to sharpen our pencils. While doing that, my then desk mate cut me deeply on my chin. Blood spurted out in all directions. No teacher was present because it was break time. I got scared and so did my friend. I called her “Stupid idiot, imbecile, and so on and so forth and she was repeating after me: I am an idiot, an imbecile, etc. We then went to clean me up at the bathroom sink. I still have a thin scar but she is still my friend. No teacher or parent took any mea­sures. It was a fact of life.
Of course, even in pre-school you had to wear a uniform. You did not find it repressive, or intruding upon your civil liberties. It was the normal thing to do. It promoted unity. You felt good in it. And it was so easy. No anxiety as to what you were going to wear the next day.

The Way We Were in Pre-School

Here we are at pre-school, in our uniforms, posing outside, in front of our building, accompanied by our two teachers. You may note that even then, we were told to keep our hands folded behind our backs. That was very effective in holding us still, you can bet on that. (to be continued)

Simona Georgescu