Josef Pokorník

"After the queue, when the Germans took the bells, people were not in the mood at all. We'll already make ones from steel. You know, the times were such that everything made of bronze was taken. The mood was such; they did not like it at all. And so together with the priest, he was called Bělík, so we thought we would have steel bell casted in Brno. There was nothing here; the beating of the clock was done on the wagon bumper. There was only a fifteen kilo bell, which rang when someone died, so it was like... Then we made a radio and the ringing was done via radio and it was enough for the people. Well there was not a single bell there, the Germans took them all. Then we came to the ecclesiastical secretary asking for the bell, and that was at the anniversary of 1100 years of arrival of Cyril and Methodius. Yeah, they let us do it: "Do it yourselves." It was already in the 1960s. Otherwise, the radio was ringing; using the gramophone record, you know what it was like, that kind of strange ringing, and especially when the needle was already dirty. It had to be regularly replaced; it was not as it is now. And so we discussed where to start with the bells. We went to Brno, I do not know which company it was, and we just wanted a steel bell. That's nice too, so we agreed to do it. Because my uncle was a priest and he had steel bells done too. Nobody takes them away. But people did not like that and demanded the bronze ones. And so we talked to the pastor and some Matěna told us that someone in Brodka was castubg bells for the first time. In the first year. I said: 'That is no problem.' So we went to Brodek, and we made such a friendship that we were almost a family. We saw what it looked like, so we ... some Mr. Buchta, Franz Havlicek, who was a bricklayer, so we've rebuilt it all and upgraded, built new kilns and casting winches. The bells were casted there, and so we stood behind the pulleys, behind that furnaces, casting together. We were all really wet, there was such heat there, around sixty degrees. We made the electrics there, we all put an electric boiler in and he said: "Well, boys, shall we make a bell in Rohatec?" I said: "But of course." So we casted two, Cyril and Methodius, we had permission to do so. So we did one of 160 pounds, and another of 152 pounds. Cyril and Methodius, we were delighted; all made of bronze. We were collecting copper, altogether a hundred kilos of copper of wires and boilers people were giving away. Then tin tubes, we were casting tin in little forms from fridge.”

"Then the Russians came and I was right then in the Brno hospital. And then the nurse came in, it was on August 21st at five o'clock. She said, "The Russians are occupying us." I say, "How could we get attacked by the Russians when they are already here?" They were here with their soldiers. I look out of bed and saw the planes up in the skies, the heavy kinds. Well, I said: "That cannot be true." And I got released out of hospital on that day. I walked through the square, but I was afraid, so I walked away. I did not trust anything anymore. There were people screaming out. I didn’t know what to believe. I walked through the whole city and hitch-hiked cars to take me. People were shouting at them, throwing things at them, wanting to drive them out. The police were there too, but it was weak. That was only the first day. Everyone was gathering and before it got filled, I was already gone. I was back at home in eight hours or maybe nine. Back then I smoked. I did not have any food, so I only smoked. I thought, 'How do I get home?' In the Square of Liberty there were tanks and everything was already riding out there; they brought all that with those heavy airplanes. So I walked on foot and hitch-hiked. And I got to Kyjov. And from Kyjov I just smoked the whole way, lit a cigarette by a cigarette. And then it was reported that it was just a temporary placement. I said, "So good." I arrived, all poisoned as smoked maybe a hundred cigarettes. Just it is temporary, good enough. I'll stop smoking. So I threw the cigarettes to the ground, trapped it and said, "And I will not smoke anymore." And I really stopped for good. I gave myself a condition: When they leave ... And then it happened: "Grandpa, they've gone, let's do it." I say, "No, I'm not going to make my mouth dirty because of them."