Christmas In Poland in 1976

The Soviet occupation made the holiday quite challenging for us privileged Americans

My mother, Rose Sebouhian walks down a sidewalk in Warsaw, Poland in 1976 with her two young boys, Damian, right, and Gareth. Photo by George Sebouhian.

Of all the Christmases I’ve celebrated in my life, there have been none so unusual as the one my family spent in Poland in 1976. Although my memories are vague at best, my recent discovery of my father’s “Poland Journal” reminded me what a unique experience that time had been.