The Polish Women’s Auxiliary Service Poem
The Polish Women’s Auxiliary Service
Not for us the call to arms,
Nor do we lower our bayonets in attack.
But, so you, Soldier, do not fight in vain,
We are here, faithful to these arms and the Eagle’s sign.
With you, we send our thoughts and care,
Which will not desert you among the bloody fields.
Our dispatch runners will bring you each order,
Hidden in secret cipher, as stubborn as your will.
Our vehicles will find your position
Through highland path or waterless desert
So you will not run short of ammunition
Or be ragged, thirsty, or suffer hunger.
And, when loneliness overcomes you,
Or bitterness against the world,
The canteens will hurry to where you are
And the good Polish word will bring you a smile.
For you, the typewriters will sound
In competition with your lively marching steps.
And you need not worry about your wife or son,
Their loving letters will find you in the trenches.
When in battle, dumb pain fills your head,
When the grenade wounds or the bullet sears,
We will care for your hurt. Soft, cool hands,
You will whisper “Sister” ... and feel lightened.
And, if we meet when from blood and ashes
New homes rise, there, in homeward climes,
Greet us “czołem” (greetings!). We, mothers, sisters, wives,
We grew together, in the brotherhood of arms.
by Jadwiga Czechowicz, Buzuluk USSR, September 1941
Translated from Polish by Danuta Dzierżek