The August military parade looked as if Warsaw had decided to turn into the biggest parking lot for military equipment for a day. Everything was shining, everything drove in a perfectly straight line. Every vehicle gave the impression that it had just returned from a few hours’ visit to a car wash and a beauty salon. The biggest attraction, of course, was the tanks. Among them, machines from the JW 1230 unit in Wesoła proudly presented themselves. They rolled along with such seriousness, as if they knew perfectly well they were the stars of the whole show. The engines purred with a deep bass, the tracks rhythmically hit the asphalt. Spectators instinctively pulled out their cameras, though many later discovered that the most spectacular thing in their photos was… a lamppost. The crews sat unbothered, while a picnic atmosphere prevailed all around. Kids waved little flags, adults watched the column with admiration. Some tried to guess how much fuel it takes for such a steel colossus to drive through the capital. The answer was probably: “more than you can fit in a family station wagon.”

Every tank looked so dignified, as if it wanted to say: “I’m in no hurry. Everyone’s going to wait anyway.” It was hard to disagree with that. When several dozen tons of steel are driving straight ahead, right of way suddenly stops being up for debate.