Jarmila Hálová

"Dobřena Šimáňová Ruthová. She got married there and her husband Zdeněk Ruth sang bass and had other cultural roles there, in the National Slovak Theatre. So he may have been there longer than she was, because she had to leave the singing career after about ten years because of her health, she had asthma. But even in that short period of time, as opposed to others who may have been acting somewhere for twenty or thirty years, she was acting for a shorter period of time, but she made her mark on the National Theatre and on that company. It played a big role then, a certain area of these cultural workers. And this aunt of ours got acquainted with the Jehovah's Witnesses, I don't know how, I don't know that history at all. And she was absolutely thrilled."

"Then I enrolled in the secondary grammar school on Sladkovského náměstí. It was the closest one to us, a nice reputable grammar school. I started in the third year of lower secondary school (tercie), and I immediately threw myself into learning English. My father encouraged me a lot in that. I already had some understanding of French and could follow it quite well. English was a new language for me, and I approached it from all sides—not just in school, but also through various other courses that were available. I enjoyed it, and I made quick progress. Before long, I felt I could express myself fairly well. Since I had an international mindset, any time I saw a foreign address... I remember this funny thing: I once wrote to an address in Hobart, Tasmania, just because it was so far away. I said I’d like to learn something about them. It turned out to be some company, and they actually replied to me. That kind of contact happened once or twice, and it brought me great joy—to be able to write to someone on the other side of the world. Later, it became easier to get such contacts through grammar school, and it was even encouraged. So I corresponded with different students, including some from Africa, which was very interesting."