With the start of another Jewish New Year…
...and the eternal hope of the future coming of a Messianic era of peace (see my letter: To My Jewish Friend), I once again had the desire to reread one of my favorite inspirational books, The Diary of a Young Girl: Anne Frank.
Anne was a young girl who, while in her early teenage years, went into hiding with her immediate family and a few others in order to escape arrest by the Nazis, and thereby avoid ending up in a concentration camp. Surviving in captivity in cramped quarters and living each day not knowing if it would be her last, a resourceful and imaginative Anne took to writing.
With only a pen and a notebook, Anne Frank kept a diary, which she named "Kitty." Miss Kitty was to become Anne's secret friend and a companion with which to share her thoughts and concerns. Into its pages went Anne's hopes and dreams. She continued to write in her diary until her arrest on August 4, 1944.
With her family's hiding place now discovered, Anne had to leave behind all her belongings, including her beloved Kitty. Sadly, Anne and her sister Margot would both perish a short time later while confined in the notorious Bergen-Belsen concentration camp sometime in early 1945. Tragically, they were only months away from the camp's liberation on April 12, 1945, by British troops.
I grew up hearing about Anne Frank. In public school, her diary was required reading. But aside from this, I never gave her story much thought. I wasn't a good student, and I had other interests, such as running around with my friends. However, when I myself became incarcerated, her story took on a whole new meaning.
For me, writing became not only an outlet, but a means of expressing my heart and sharing my interests as well. Today, I relate to Anne Frank as a fellow writer and a source of profound inspiration. I also admire her determination to write while in confinement and under difficult conditions, and to do it consistently.
Today, Anne Frank's diary has gone throughout the world. It has impacted the lives of millions, and it continues to do so. Young Anne has taught me that with only an ordinary writing pen in hand, along with a determined mind, that one person can make a difference, or at least try to.
D.B.
Note: For more of my writings about Anne Frank, see:
A Girl and Her Pen and Anne Frank the Writer.
Anne was a young girl who, while in her early teenage years, went into hiding with her immediate family and a few others in order to escape arrest by the Nazis, and thereby avoid ending up in a concentration camp. Surviving in captivity in cramped quarters and living each day not knowing if it would be her last, a resourceful and imaginative Anne took to writing.
With only a pen and a notebook, Anne Frank kept a diary, which she named "Kitty." Miss Kitty was to become Anne's secret friend and a companion with which to share her thoughts and concerns. Into its pages went Anne's hopes and dreams. She continued to write in her diary until her arrest on August 4, 1944.
With her family's hiding place now discovered, Anne had to leave behind all her belongings, including her beloved Kitty. Sadly, Anne and her sister Margot would both perish a short time later while confined in the notorious Bergen-Belsen concentration camp sometime in early 1945. Tragically, they were only months away from the camp's liberation on April 12, 1945, by British troops.
I grew up hearing about Anne Frank. In public school, her diary was required reading. But aside from this, I never gave her story much thought. I wasn't a good student, and I had other interests, such as running around with my friends. However, when I myself became incarcerated, her story took on a whole new meaning.
For me, writing became not only an outlet, but a means of expressing my heart and sharing my interests as well. Today, I relate to Anne Frank as a fellow writer and a source of profound inspiration. I also admire her determination to write while in confinement and under difficult conditions, and to do it consistently.
Today, Anne Frank's diary has gone throughout the world. It has impacted the lives of millions, and it continues to do so. Young Anne has taught me that with only an ordinary writing pen in hand, along with a determined mind, that one person can make a difference, or at least try to.
D.B.
Note: For more of my writings about Anne Frank, see:
A Girl and Her Pen and Anne Frank the Writer.
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