Thus, the comrade inspector came to our high school in Târgu-Jiu. We all delivered our speeches the way we could. We had to defend the sole Party because it represented the entire nation and the socialist-type democracy, which was the real democracy.

I forgot the bit I had to learn- I guess that knowing it would crown it all- it was something about equal rights and about the entire nation?s chance to work.

I was supposed to say that we didn?t have redundancy like in America. We all had to fight against the market economy, the biggest scourge of humanity.

Some girl in the group was supposed to talk about the market economy, one with good memory and who had learnt The Comrade?s speeches more efficiently than I had. She used to jump in the conversation every time one of us would lose track or stammer.

Moreover, she used to articulate the words and to speak perfectly, in a very soapy manner, as expected, taking after the recitals delivered during Cântarea României Festival¹.

But we used to have a classmate who started to make practical jokes, telling quips about Ceauşescu and sharing with us what he used to secretly hear from America?s Voice. He kept on saying that Ceauşescu was going to be overthrown and I was either angry or dead frightened.

And here I see our guy putting a straw fig in the hair of the girl with perfect articulation, ruining the hairdo which she so carefully arranged for the inspection.

And as she was jumping on and on in the conversation, completing our speeches, the fig was haughtily dandling onwards and backwards. I can remember feeling all my bones stunned and then there followed the laughter coming from the boys in the last row, the deadly pallor spreading on our teacher?s face and finally the inspector?s fidgety laughter.

1 Praising Romania Festival.