In Memory of Professor Pużyński.

My whole professional life has been, and still is, inextricably connected with Professor Stanisław Pużyński. He was my first teacher, the supervisor of my PhD thesis as well as the tutor of my postdoctoral dissertation. But this is only the half of the truth – Professor Pużyński shaped my views not only on psychiatry. I became mature in his company; I have aged in his company, too. He has always been here, but now, as He is no longer, I feel obliged to tell a few words about Him to those who didn't know Him or knew Him rather casually, only in official situations. Professor Pużyński was not an easily approachable person. It would be rather difficult to call Him " friendly " as the word is popularly understood. He was definitely not a " buddy " , and that was something I truly valued and respected. That is why I believe that any form of making so important a person in the field of Polish psychiatry more recogni-sable is a good idea. I met Professor Pużyński in the early fall of 1986. I do remember that encounter. He welcomed me in His former ground-floor office at Institute of Psychiatry and Neurology (later, He was occupying another office on the first floor). He wore His favourite green waistcoat made from some plush material. The waistcoat was already worn out so it must have been His most beloved part of wardrobe. I liked that – there was a real touch of class about it. One could say that, as for today, it was almost " hip ". I am sure that in the beyond, where Professor is reading these words (and He is reading for sure as He was always reading, and everything), He is just tapping his finger against His forehead and planning how to dress me down. It was always like that – I was writing and He was calling upon me to mend my ways. I was having inspiration and He was taking me to task. I was invariably planning to abolish something and He was watching over me to make sure that I wouldn't hurt myself while doing this. It is really precious when you can depend on someone that way. But let's return to the first encounter and Professor's shoes – the shoes were even better than the waistcoat. They were nothing more nor less than …