A Thousand and One Evil Deeds

Szychta and Kalus threw a cat off a bridge. Kalus, Bajlas and Gala devastated a cemetery. Bajlas and Szychta set fire to a gazebo at the allotments. Bajlas broke a plate on his friend’s head at school. Kalus, Bajlas, Szychta, Gala and Mati keep coming up with ideas that are limited only by their imagination. They fairly share their cigarettes, chocolate, crisps and cola. Together they run away from big Agata. This is a story of five boys from Biskupice, a former workers’ and miners’ district of Zabrze. For the rest of the city, this is a dangerous place, with no prospects or opportunities for the future. For these five boys who were raised here, this is the centre of the universe and an unlimited playground. Children from Biskupice, unlike their peers from large cities, have more life space and freedom of action. They do not live in gated communities, they do not have separate, sterile playgrounds. They can walk on the lawns. Nobody minds that they play football wherever they want (except for Mrs Pierogowa). Their lives are not marked by fears of a paedophile lurking in the bushes, or of broken glass. Their world fascinates with space and imagination. Sometimes, however, the future becomes a worry, and this one question – how many bad deeds does it take to become an adult? — Konstancja Nowina Konopka