The most wonderful women from the Włodzice Wielkie Rural Housewives’ Circle, as Mateusz wrote on his Facebook, prepared the entire event for 70 people. He was only asked to host it. When asked whether he would host the parish harvest festival, he replied: Why not? At least I’ll get to meet the priest.
– The whole village knew that Witek and I were married – says Mateusz Machowicz. – And those who did not know yet found out during the parish harvest festival. Some people asked who I was, and I replied that I lived at the end of the village with my husband. There was no shock, alarm or sign of a lack of acceptance. Overall, our experience shows that the Polish countryside is much more tolerant than prevailing stereotypes suggest. People are much more open-minded than politicians who have failed to notice that Poland has changed – he adds.
What happened in Włodzice this year had never happened before: witches and the parish priest under one roof! We are talking about Ania, Justyna, Patrycja, Kamila and Agata—in other words, the Witches from the Bóbr River from the Rural Housewives’ Circle.
The Parish Harvest Festival took place on the night before the flood. After Mass, parishioners came through the pouring rain to enjoy themselves in the village community center.
– It’s well known that I’m a guy both for dancing and for the rosary, so I grabbed the microphone, took the prepared playlist of Zenek Martyniuk’s hits, and got to work! – Mateusz recounts. – The hall was cold at first, but the non-alcoholic products from our Manufaktura warmed everyone up. I went from table to table asking whether everyone was having a good time, and a moment later I no longer knew who was pulling whom onto the dance floor. I had a great time warming up the dance floor in our village community center, which had not been used for more than a dozen years. Some women recalled the kinds of parties that had once taken place there. “Well, it’s time to bring those traditions back,” I replied, because everyone knows that tradition is important! – Mateusz emphasizes.
And who would have thought that little Włodzice Wielkie would have more open-minded and European residents than Piotr Roman, the president of Bolesławiec, holding the Europe Prize in his hand...
The next event, which will already be a Włodzice tradition, will be Halloween. The parish priest will not be there, but perhaps Mr. Roman will be tempted to attend and get a taste of the Europeanness that, for now, he enjoys only during his trips to London. After all, we are all made of the same clay!
