for spring and summer 1936, when Zoya was
twelve years old
What child has not kept a diary! Nine-year-old Shura was no exception. I could not help laughing when I read it. Shura would usually write something like this, "Got up at eight today. Ate, drank and went out into the street. Had a fight with Petka." Or: "Got up, ate, drank and vent for a walk. Did not have a fight with anyone today." The entries differed only in one thing: "Had a fight with Petka," "Had a fight with Vitka," "Did not have a fight with anyone." Otherwise, they were as like as peas in a pod.
Zoya treated her diary very seriously, just as she treated any work she undertook. Her entries were detailed and not too far between. I still have her diary for the spring and summer of 1936.
I have already said that the children used to go away for the summer holidays to a Young Pioneer camp. They used to have a good time there, but I only visited them rarely, and as always we missed each other greatly when we were apart. And therefore we looked forward very much to a summer stay with Grandma and Grandpa at Aspen Woods. They had been inviting us there for quite some time, and we so much wanted to spend the summer together. In 1936 our dream came true; we had begun thinking about our trip to Aspen Woods ever since the spring. And it is from those days that I have a thin notebook.—Zoya's diary.
Here are some passages:
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| The first page, dated May 1, of Zoya's diary for spring and summer 1936, when Zoya was twelve years old |
"May 1
"The First of May—a holiday of merry happiness!
"In the morning at half past seven Mama went to the demonstration. The weather was sunny, but there was a wind blowing. I was in a gay mood when I woke up. I cleared away quickly, had something to eat and went to the tram stop to watch the demonstrators, all going to the Red Square. I was in the street all day, went to the shop for sweets, ran and played in the meadow. Then it rained. When Mama came back from the demonstration our children's party began. Presents to each were given out"
"May 3
"Mama did not go to work today and I was very glad. At school I got a 'good' for Dictation. But for Literature and Arithmetic I got 'excellent.' On the whole it was a good day."
"May 12
"At about nine in the morning I went to the shops for milk and bread. Mama bought a bookstand. It made the room bright, beautiful and grand at once. The bookstand is made out of bamboo and it is beautiful. I like it.
"I was in a strange mood: I wanted to go for a walk in the street, run and play. But towards evening they began to share out the kitchen-garden allotments. I got the piece of land under our window. I dug up my allotment. And I dream that Mummy will buy many different seeds—flowers and vegetables—and then my kitchen garden will be lovely!"
"May 24
"The exams start tomorrow. It was a warm, fresh morning. Mama told me what to buy at the shop and went off to work. I got up, put the room in order, but then Mama came in, for she finished early today. And we went first for milk, then for kerosene. We love to go shopping together. Towards midday it got hotter. You could not sit anywhere but in the shade. They brought my copy of Pionerskaya Pravda.
"There is no time to read books, but I find time to read my paper. Today they write that a Young Pioneer Palace has been opened in Postov. It is a very fine one. In the very best building. There are eighty rooms there—and all for us children. It has a toy telephone station. And in another room you pull a switch—and two trams go round in a circle. The trams, of course, are toy ones, but they are just like real ones. And they also say that soon there will be a tiny Metro in the Palace, like the Moscow one, but little. And then those children who have not been to Moscow will still be able to see the Metro.
"And, of course, there was a lot in the Pionerskaya Pravda about the exams. They write: 'Answer calmly, confidently and clearly!' Exams! I do not think of anything else. I am revising my lessons and preparing myself. The main thing is not to be afraid of the teacher and assistants who will be present. And I will definitely pass the exams with 'excellents' and nothing less than 'goods.'"
"June 11
"Today they will tell us who has passed the exams and how we passed them, and they will give out the report cards and prizes!
"I got up at half past eight and went to the school. All the children were very clean and smartly dressed. And then our study director began his report. It was very quiet in the hail. There were some beautiful books on a table covered with red cloth. They give them to the excellent pupils. And then they called me out. I have got 'excellent' for Russian and Arithmetic, and 'good' for Nature Study and Geography. Shura has also got good marks. They called me up and gave me the very best book—Krylov's fables!"
"In the morning I did not feel like doing anything. I got up somehow and started work. Mama had been working past midnight and was still sleeping. So as not to disturb her, Shura arid I went for a walk. It was windy but the sun was lovely and warm. The water in the pond was like fresh milk—warm, clean and nice. We had a bathe and climbed out onto the bank and began to dry ourselves on the grass. After bathing we wanted something sour to eat, and we went to the garden. There we began to gather small sour apples.
Suddenly, at about seven or eight o'clock our cousin Slava arrived. He is five years older than me, but we get on well together. I showed him Krylov's fables which they gave me at school, and I showed him a folder of Shura's drawings. He praised them very much.
"Every day I think of nothing but the country. And at last we're going!"
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Zoya's annual report card which she received when passing from the fourth to the fifth grade. The table records Zoya's progress, attendance and conduct during the year. For Russian Language, written and oral, and Literature she received consistently excellent marks. Her General History was also marked excellent throughout the year. For Geography Zoya had mostly good marks, and one Excellent mark; similarly with Mathematics, Biology and Singing; Drawing and Physical Culture excellent. The attendance section (top right) shows that Zoya missed no school in the first and last quarters of the year. In the second quarter she missed 34 days (56 lessons) through illness, in the third quarter only two days (8 lessons). Zoya was late for school only once during the year. The conduct section (bottom right) is signed by a teacher and countersigned by her mother and records that Zoya's social work and discipline were consistently excellent throughout the year |
"July 2
All yesterday was taken up with preparations, and we did not even go to bed the whole night. And then at half past four we (that is, Shura, Slava, Mama and I) went to the tram stop. I felt sad that Mama was not coming with us and happy at the same time to be going to the country. I have not been there for five years!
"We travelled a whole night and day on the train. At the station we got into a cart and rode to Aspen Woods (that's the name of our village). When we arrived Slava knocked at the door and Grandad said, 'Come in there!' He thought it was the tractor driver Vasya come to pay him a visit. Grandma had a pain in the chest, but when we arrived she was very glad and the pain stopped. She gave us pancakes, clabber and fresh milk. After that I went to have a bathe, played with the girls, and in the evening in the village reading room I met my old and very good friend Manya. It was a good day. We played jolly games, and the country air is wonderful! I went to sleep in the kitchen on Grandad's bed."
"July 7
"I go for walks, run about and help Granny with her work. I like doing what she says. I go and watch the fowls in the wheat field, bathe three times a day, go to the library. I have read a lot of interesting books: Gulliver in Lilliput Gogol's Inspector General and Turgenev's Bezhin Meadow.
"Granny gives us very tasty things to eat: eggs, fried chicken, pancakes. At the market we buy cucumbers, currants and cherries. But sometimes we have trouble. One day (I don't remember which) Shura lost his jacket. We went to look for it but couldn't find it.
"And sometimes I go to the river and come home late. And then Granny is cross with me."
"July 15
"When there is no work to do it is somehow boring and dreary. But here, in the village, it is particularly boring without work. And I have decided to help Granny all I can. When I got up, the idea came into my head of washing the floor. I liked washing it. Then I made some ribbons for myself out of red silk. They came out very well, not worse than my blue ones.
"It was a very good day, but in the evening there was loud thunder and fine rain. Bright flashes kept on appearing in the sky—lightning. Thunder frightens the animals: our little goat broke away from the herd, and Granny only just managed to find it in somebody's garden. Today I wrote some letters to Moscow: to Mama and my friend Ira."
"July 23
"Today I looked and saw Nina (that's my cousin) coming with her brother and mama through the wheat which has been planted on the common pasture.
"They live not far off—in the village of Velmozhka (36 kilometres from Aspen Woods). We were very glad they had come."
"July 26
"When Nina arrived I was very glad. We played and talked together, read books and had lots of fun. Granny gave us draughts and lotto, and we had a good game. Today I did not get on with Nina. But afterwards we made it up, and I decided never to quarrel with her again."
"July 30
"We slept in the hail. As soon as Granny came and woke us up, Shura and I remembered that we would have to say good-bye to Nina, Lelik and Auntie Anya. They were leaving for Velmozhka. A cart drew up. The bright sun rose slowly over the awakening earth.
"We said good-bye and they left. I am very sorry they have gone.
"In the afternoon I helped Granny to do some chores: I ironed the washing, went for water and did other things."
"July 31
"Midday. Very hot. There are rumours even that on Sunday the water in the brook will start boiling.
"The heat is going down, it is nearing evening. I go to fetch the goats. There are five of them: Maika, Chernomorka, Baron, Zorka and one without a name—just Goat.
"Granny milks them. I carry the milk away into the cellar. We go to bed."
"August 1
"My plaits are very short. But since I came here Granny has been doing them very tightly, and they have begun to grow a little. Granny is very kind.
"In the evening a letter from Mummy arrived. She writes that she is ill and may come here. I am very sorry she is ill. She has her holiday from the 15th of August, and then she will come to us."
"August 2
"This time Granny left me to mind the house. She banked up the stove and went out. I made a mess of things. Granny had cooked macaroni and told me to chop eggs into it. I wanted to put the pan of macaroni onto the bench. I put the pan down on the oven prongs. They turned over and my macaroni went flying! I wiped the floor quickly and cooked some fresh macaroni.
"Towards evening Granny and I went to bathe. There were rumours that it would be hot today and that the water in the brook would boil. But that was not true. It was a very hot day but the water in the brook did not boil."
"August 5
"Today I helped Granny: I washed the floor, the windows and benches. I ironed the washing. I am anxious to know about the state of Mummy's health."
"August 11
"There is very little rain here. I hope the harvest does not get burned. In Granny's kitchen garden there are cucumbers, pumpkins, melons, cabbages, tobacco, tomatoes and hemp. On the common pasture there are potatoes, pumpkins again and tomatoes. We have no sunflowers of our own. Granny did not know that we should be coming and did not plant any. It is very hot. The strong hot wind stirs up the dust and stings your eyes."
"August 13
"We were just going to have tea when a letter arrived from Mummy. She writes that she will be coming on Saturday, that is tomorrow evening. When we read the letter we were very, very glad. She will come here and will at last have a little rest. Grandad has gone to Tambov."
"August 15
"Early in the morning there was a quiet knock on the door. Shura and Granny and I jumped out of bed. Mummy had come! How overjoyed we were! Granny began to fry pancakes, and Mama had brought presents for us. Auntie Olya could not come herself but had sent us a lot of tasty things."
"August 17
"Mama, Shura and I went to the kitchen garden and picked a pumpkin and seven melons no bigger than your fist. Granny made porridge out of the pumpkin and dried the seeds.
"Towards evening Shura, Mummy and I went to bathe. How good it is here! But with Mummy it's three times as good!"
"August 19
"It has been raining. Granny has given me a lot of different scraps to make a blanket for myself."
"August 22
"It was a dull morning. Shura and I have been rather naughty. But we have decided we won't annoy Mummy any more."
"August 24
"When I got up this morning Granny gave me a very old painted box, and Grandad gave me his picture. I was very pleased with these presents. I'll keep them as souvenirs. We are thinking about Moscow."
Next: "Little White Stick"
