Journal 95 - A mailman who liked the foreign mails

My friend who had not answered my letters wrote me about very prosaic reasons his silence. In the local post office worked the mailman who “liked” mail from the USA. He was probably looking for money in these letters. Next, independently of the result, he was throwing away mails to the garbage.
This guy doesn’t work in this post office any more. Right now, I can send letters to my friend because “obstacle” has removed. I got back my friend who I have never lost.

Journal 94 - I was wrong

I have many good friends in Poland. I keep in touch with some by e-mail. But, many of them don’t have access to the Internet. In this case, I am writing conventional letters to send to them. I like to do it.
I sent three letters to my one best friend, but I didn’t receive answers. I was worried and I had black thoughts. Occasionally, my other friend wrote me that the potential receiver is okay. I sent him the next letter but by my friend in this case. Soon, I have received from my “silent friend” a long and nice letter. What he has written me, I will tell you in my next journal.

Journal 93 – In memorial my professor

My professor was an outgoing scientist, and the friend of students. On the one hand, he had a deep scientific knowledge and a life experience. On the other hand, he was honest and sensitive to human matters.
I devote these humble journals my professor’s memory. I assure him, that regarding his teaching, I will never stop enriching my knowledge and improving my personality.
I was a student a few decades ago, I am a student at present, and I will remain a student for ever. Contemporary, this kind of attitude isn’t temporary fashion, but it is necessity. It can be a topic for a different journal.

Journal 92 – A am owe my professor a lot

After my graduation from the university, thanks my professor’s great recommendation, I obtained a teacher position at the pedagogical high school. I taught education, psychology and many others professional particular subjects. I am believed that this period decided about my future life and a professional career. I kept in touch with my professor for over 30 years after I became alumnus. He gave me precious advices, and I knew that I always could count on him. When I left Poland and arrived in the UJSA, I sent my professor a few letters. After six months, I have received the letter from professor’s wife. She wrote that my professor, he husband, was suffering and passed an away a few weeks ago. I was very sad. I lost my best teacher and the faithful friend.

Journal 91 – Professor’s relation with students

The professor was interested in student problems. He gave students a lot of advices and helped to solve different problems. He especially took care of students who were preparing a master thesis’s under his scientific care. I was lucky because I was among them.

Journal 90 – Roman’s personality directional attributes

Any personality, but tutorial especially, isn’t complete without a properly developed directional attributes. Roman has a strong personality, and he was a strict person; concurrently, he was a warm and good hearted man. He was a very demanding teacher. Roman demanded from others, but from himself in particular. He had high scientific and life aspirations. He tried to graft these values his students.
The professor was researching very important problems in theory of teaching and published a few books. How I mentioned above, Roman graduated his upper level doctorate, in the European nomenclature, in humanities in St. Petersburg (at that time Leningrad). But, in his lectures an adjective “socialistic” was very seldom occurring; it wasn’t common in those times.
Roman was Jew and because of this reason, he faced many obstacles in his professional carrier in those times. I knew about it and understood his better than others. I was a member of national minority too, but different than he was. We were never talking about these problems. I later learned that his two children emigrated from Poland to Israel and Sweden.

Journal 89 – My professor’s personality instrumental attributes

Such instrumental attributes as intelligence, knowledge and professional skills are essential factors of a workshop of each teacher. In accordance with W. Stern’s definition, intelligence is, “…a general mental adaptability to new problems and conditions of life”.
My professor was a very intelligent, even a bright man. In this case, he checked up hypothesis which says, that intelligence usually goes hand in hand with a good sense of humor. Roman was professor of education, but he had broad knowledge from technique, physics, mathematics and others scientific branches. He graduated from prestigious universities in Poland and the former Soviet Union. He was a remarkable Polish scholar. His lectures were very creative and interesting. He was a good orator. During his lectures, he usually used only a little piece of paper, which contained only an outline of the problems which he explained.

Journal 89 – My professor’s personality instrumental attributes

Such instrumental attributes as intelligence, knowledge and professional skills are essential factors of a workshop of each teacher. In accordance with W. Stern’s definition, intelligence is, “…a general mental adaptability to new problems and conditions of life”.
My professor was a very intelligent, even a bright man. In this case, he checked up hypothesis which says, that intelligence usually goes hand in hand with a good sense of humor. Roman was professor of education, but he had broad knowledge from technique, physics, mathematics and others scientific branches. He graduated from prestigious universities in Poland and the former Soviet Union. He was a remarkable Polish scholar. His lectures were very creative and interesting. He was a good orator. During his lectures, he usually used only a little piece of paper, which contained only an outline of the problems which he explained.

Journal 88 – My best teacher

In next few journals, I will describe personality my best teacher. Only, all these pieces will consist of one a logical whole.
William Stern, a well known German psychologist, divided attributes, traits of personality into two main groups: instrumental and directional.
The instrumental attributes, this scientist numbered: abilities, knowledge and skills. The second one mainly consists of: aims, aspirations and values.
I consider that at present, we don’t care about the second group of attributes in teachers at all, especially in the professor’s college of personality. I can value the Polish reality because I don’t know American one.
However, my professor at the university at Lodz had a very coherent personality. It consisted of all attributes which I mentioned above; therefore, he was my best teacher. My professor’s name was Roman.

Journal 86 – South Africa – one of richer countries in Africa

In the previous week, in our class, we saw the video-movie about South Africa. This movie showed South Africa as an interesting and relatively rich country. It’s true because South Africa on the list “Richest countries in Africa” is placed on the second position. Its the GDP per capita is $ 10,700. The list consists of 20 countries. The fist position occupies Mauritius, which has the GDP per capita $ 11,400; whereas, the last country on this list is Mauritania, with its GDP per capita only $ 1,800.
In the next journal, I will try to describe the most general problems of African continent.

Journal 86 – Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York City

Saint Patrick’s Cathedral is the seat of the Roman Catholic Archdiocese. The structure is located at 50th Street and Fifth Avenue in Manhattan, just across the street from Rockefeller Center. The cathedral was designed by American architect James Renwick. The structure constructed between 1858 and 1879. The construction is one of the best known examples of Gothic Revival architecture in the United States.

Journal 85 - Saint Patrick - an Ireland missionary

Saint Patrick was born in 389 and died in 461. He was a missionary in Ireland in the 400s. who converted the Irish to Christianity. In Ireland, St. Patrick’s Day is primarily a religious holiday. People honor Saint Patrick by attending special religious services and wearing shamrocks. In the United States, St. Patrick’s Day is primarily a secular holiday. According to legend, Saint Patrick used a shamrock to explain the idea of the Trinity to the Irish.

Journal 84 – St. Patrick’s Day Parade

Today, March 17, is St Patrick’s Day. Every year, in this day, parade is held. The biggest St. Patrick’s Day celebration is in New York City. Usually, the parade features more than 150,000 marchers.
More than 100 U.S. cities host parade. The first this kind of parade took place in Boston in 1737.

Journal 83 - Carter’s book about the Palestinian - Israel conflict


Jimmy Carter, the former American president, has written a new book. Its title is: Palestine: Peace Not Apartheid, 2006.
Carter’s book caused a big controversy in the USA. Many Jews consider that Carter is an anti-Semite and his intention is to hurt Jewish people. On the other side, many Americans answered that, “Israel could not continue to discriminate against its Palestinian-Israeli citizens nor violate international rights in the occupied territories”.
I am not a politician, but I consider that the life of Palestinians is almost intolerable right now. Israeli politics is contrary to the principles of the Jewish religion. I think that if Israel will not give up Gaza and remove Jewish settlers from this territory, peace will not come to this region. The English Prime Minister, Tony Blair, stated that 70% of the conflicts in the world can be traced back to the Israeli – Palestinian conflict.
I borrowed Carter’s book from the library at East Meadow, yesterday. It is a nice edition – a good quality paper and the big letters. So pity that this edition doesn’t contain pictures. The book consists of 266 pages.

Journal 81 – The Polish minister of education has a big trouble

Roman Giertych, the Polish minister of education, participated at the meeting with his European colleagues in Germany.
Giertych is a head of the ultraconservative League of Polish Families, which is a member of the political govern coalition in Poland. Minister R. Giertych called abortion, “a crime legalized by many parliaments” and, “a new form of barbarism”. He also said, “One must limit homosexual propaganda so that children will not have an proper view of family”.
Polish Prime Minister, Jaroslaw Kaczynski, had criticized Giertych’s remarks in Germany. The prime minister stressed that they didn’t represent the Polish government’s position.

Journal 80 – Algeria – a large African country

Algeria is a large country in northern Africa. Among African countries, only Sudan is larger. Algeria occupies an area 919,595 square miles, and has population about 34 million.
This country was the French colony. It became independent in 1962. More than have of all Algerians aged 15 or older cannot read and write

Journal 79 – It’s really a good gift…

The Algerian president, Abdelaziz Buteflika, gave women-prisoners a special gift in the International Women’s Day. The president pardoned all women, who are at prisons, 1 year from their sentences.
President Buteflika in his address stressed that women play a very important role in the Algerian society. He also said that situation women, after Algeria became independent, systematically is going to better days. However, Algerian women’s organizations represented a different point of view. They don’t agree with President’s opinion. They consider that women still are a second sort of people in the Algerian society.

Journal 78 – International Women’s Day

Today, March 8, the Polish people celebrate International Women’s Day. In Poland, this holiday is marked solemnly every year. From days when communism collapsed, March 8 is simply an occasion for men to express their love and esteem to the women.
I remember these celebrations with great clarity. I didn’t like these ceremonies, because they usually had an “artificial character”, especially at the work.

77 – Different sources of happiness

Scientists consider that gourmands need for happiness includes the use of saffron because it consists of a component, which causes the excretion of hormones of happiness.
Babies are very happy when they are eating oatmeal, because it reminds them of taste of the mother milk.
Marriages are happier than persons who live solitarian; they are rarely sick and solve problems easily.
A man needs a car and a stereo set for happiness, however a woman, a bath and phone.

Journal 76 – Success as a source of happiness

The fourth source of happiness is success. The success is a favorable result, good fortune. It is natural desire of a human being. Success in learning English comes from intelligence and hard work. Success in one field does not assure success in another. Jogging and full of concentration at job need not only strong will, but it gives us satisfaction. Especially, sportsmen, artists, and discoverers during their activities leave behind their self all cares and forget about their surroundings. In these kinds of situations, brain break away the wave’s alpha, decrease frequency of the pulse, vessels enlarge and a person feels pleasant warmth. If we will add to full relaxation sense of success, we will be happy.

75 – Ecstasy as a source of happiness

The third of source of happiness is ecstasy. It is a condition of very great joy; strong feeling that delights or thrills a heart. It is rapture. The ecstasy is any strong feeling that completely absorbs the mind. If we observing sunset, winning at the lottery, keeping of the child hand, we can experience ecstasy. We should collect these moments with great of zeal.
The researches discovered that these kinds of moments are saving in our brain and we can come back to them at any time. A man should look for their at theses moments when he buys gifts or organizes for friends charming evening.

Journal 74 - Sense of security as source of happiness

Sense of security is one of the most important needs in the human life. The security is freedom from danger, care, or fear; feeling condition of being safe. Our family and friends secure us protection and sense of security.
A man is a collective creature. He needs to belong to a proper group. Relations of a human being with other members of the particular community give him happiness.

Journal 73 – Love as a source of happiness

Love plays very important role in the human life. The love is strong affection of one person for other, usually based on feelings of passion or sexual attraction. We saying, “John loves Mary”.
On the other hand, love can be strong liking or interest in something, f. ex., “She loves of books”, “I love my country”.
I would like to tell you about love in relations between two people. During patting and kissing two people the organisms produce opiates which causing of euphoria. Euphoria is a feeling of happiness and bodily well-being. Euphoria reduces hormones of stress and reinforces our immunology system.
An American scientist, Professor Steven Meier from the University at Detroit, discovered in enamored people high number of cells K. These cells kill germs. Therefore, loving kiss is not only pleasant but healthy, too.

Journal 72


The happiness is the best feeling. It is a moment when we desire to hug in our arms the whole world. The scientists discovered that exist four aspects of happiness necessary everyone who wants to be healthy and content.
These aspects correspond with our values of happiness: love, sense of security, ecstasy and success.
Michael Thiel, the psychologist from Hamburg considers, that if we want to feel well, we need a little bit of each of mentioned four sources.
I will tell you about these aspects of happiness in the next four my journals.