Letter to Maria Maćkowska-Wydrowa and the poem Pious Rhymes

Maria Maćkowska-Wydrowa (died 1961) was one of Józef Czechowicz’s closest friends. The poet probably met her during their joint studies at the Institute of Special Pedagogy. She taught at a special school in Siedlce, from where she was transferred in 1930 to a similar school in Lublin, where she worked with the author of Kamień [Stone]. In later years she was employed at the Institute for the Deaf and Blind in Warsaw. In 1934, she married the painter Jan Wydra, whom she had met through Czechowicz.

The poet dedicated many poems to Maria Maćkowska: światło po południu, śpiewny pocałunek, melancholia, nuta na dzwony [light in the afternoon, singing kiss, melancholy, note for bells]. He also dedicated a prose poem from 1938 - Bajka dla pani M. W. [A Fairy Tale for Mrs M. W.] - to his friend, including her initials in the title.

In the only known letter addressed to her, written on the 8th of July 1938, Czechowicz discusses a wide range of issues and topics. Among other things, he writes about his collaboration with Franciszka Arnsztajna. He mentions joint work on a translation from English, commissioned by the Polish Radio, as well as a poetic dialogue between the two poets. He announces his intention to continue the two-voice conversation, later to publish it as a "little book". Unfortunately, this idea did not come to fruition. Dwugłos [Double voice] was published in 1939 in the second issue of the magazine "Pióro".

The information about Arnsztajna was probably interesting for the addressee of the letter, who knew the Lublin poet very well. At meetings of the board of the Literary Union in Lublin, Maćkowska made it easier for the deaf Arnsztajna to communicate with other participants, by writing down the content of their speeches. In a letter to Maria Maćkowska-Wydrowa, Czechowicz also included the manuscript of the poem Rymy pobożne [Devout Rhymes]. The poem was published in "Wymiary" [Dimensions] (1938, no. 3), and then was included in the volume nuta człowiecza [Human Notes]. In the editorial attached to the letter, it has a different layout. Attention is also drawn to a photograph of an unknown portrait of Czechowicz pasted under the manuscript of the poem in the bottom right corner of the page.