Pictures to Come!
You all had an opportunity on Thursday to do something that very few people in your generation have gotten to do, and fewer and fewer people in the future will do. You (Holocaust Lit and English II) got to hear the story of Sonja DuBois, a survivor of the Holocaust. I really don't want to post a bunch of questions on here or put words in your mouths. I mainly want to hear your response to her story.
I will tell you that I was so interested in what she said about the moment that she decided to start sharing her story with others was when she saw the Bible study about Esther and realized that she, too, lived a double life. And just like Esther, there were lots of people involved in saving Sonja. I, as a parent, cannot imagine what her parents must have felt when they left her at the station, her mother who put the necklace around her neck, and then walked away. Even if I KNEW, beyond a shadow of a doubt, that Emma and Kelsey would be safer left behind (and her parents didn't KNOW), I cannot fathom what it would feel like to put them in the arms of a stranger to them and walk away, not knowing what would become of them. The pain they must have suffered at that moment probably hurt so much more than the death they encountered later. I also was staggered by how much we take for granted with our own lives, in that we all have people who can tell our life stories, who we look like, act like, and so on. She has no one in her life who can do that for her.
I said I wasn't going to put words in your mouths and I guess I did. I could probably write forever about my response to her story and the feelings it stirred in me. She was so arresting, such a powerful speaker, yet so approachable. But now, the responsibility lies with you and me. We are among the few people who have heard first hand the story of a Holocaust survivor. What, now, will we do with it? Sonja's story lives on with us. Her parents live on in us, because we know the sacrifice they made so that she could live to tell. It is your duty, your obligation, to bear witness when the time comes that no one is alive to say, "I was there. It happened to my family. I saw the camps. I lived it." YOU will have to stand up and say, "I heard the story of a survivor. I saw the necklace her mother left her, saw the one surviving photograph of her parents." It did happen, and we have to make sure that the lessons learned are applied to our daily lives.
I guess that's my sermon for the day.
Lit Terms 2
5 years ago
11 comments:
I (alison ledford) would like to say that Sonja's story really is an inspiration. Her life has been through so much and yet she is still such a strong individual. I completely agree that her story has taught people to never take anything for granted. I know that she definately helped me see that. I have always heard about the Holocaust, but never really thought much of it. Now I have seen and heard what it was like through a survivor's eyes. Speaking with her was a real honor and I know that i will keep her story going.
I really thought Sonja's presentation was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity. As you said, not many people will be able to say that they met a Holocaust survivor, let alone hear their story. We should all feel very gifted for being able to have such fortune to meet and hear her tell her story about her depraved life as a hidden child. I will remember this for as long as I live because it really reaches deep and brings out our true emotions and it is up to us to help her knowledge live on.
-Trevor
Sonja was a very inspiring speaker to me, it hit me hard to know that her parents had to make a hard decision like that in giving her up. I could never truely know the real feelling behind that because I don't have a child but I know it would be hard on my parents to make a decision. This was my favorite part out of the speech, also her will to keep going and make it is extremely inspiring I could only wish to have her will power. I was so moved by her story that I went home and told my family, and I will keep telling her story too many others.
-Cierra Anderson-
Getting to hear Sonja speak was truly a treat. Not every gets to her a Holocaust survivor and now I can say that I am one of the lucky few that has. Her story was a very touching and was more interesting than i thought it was going to be. I will also remember getting to hear her speak for the rest of my life.
-Graham
I feel proud to be in the last generation that will meet a Holocaust survivor. It truly was an honor to meet one. They have been through so much and have quite a story to tell. It is hard to believe that so many people went through so many tribulations. One thing that struck me was in the book "Night" when the son on the train attacked his own father for a sliver of bread. Anyways, it was a great honor, if that word even comes close, to meet her.
-Tory Spatafore
Sonja's story was a great experience that I will treasure for the rest of my life. I feel very honored to be able to hear those stories. It really touches my heart to hear what they found special or what they remember. Being in the last generation that will hear their stories is more than I can fathom. Her story was extremely bittersweet. It was sad that her mother had to give her up, but at the same time she was extremely lucky that someone could take her and raise her inconspicuously. Reading the book NIGHT made me want to cry, it was extremely sad. It was even worse seeing that picture of him in the camp. He looked so much older than fifteen.
Before hearing Sonja's story, the Holocaust didn't seem too real to me. It doesn't really process in my mind when reading it. But after hearing her, it actually felt real to me. The Holocaust seemed like a real event. --Abby
Her story was beautiful in such a sad way. Its not at all a simple speech but it was her Life, and what happened to her and her parents. I do not know how she found the strength to speak about her experiences, her parents, the family that took her in. If anyone is to say the Holocaust did not happen, I know without a doubt I would say something. Honestly I could not even a tiny bit, put myself in her shoes, or any of the holocaust victim's shoes, and if someone was to say (that is if I were a victim) that that did not happen to me I would choke right there on the spot. So if/when the time comes, my voice will be heard.
Thank You for allowing us to have the opportunity to hear her story!
Whitney Livingston
I do agree that we take so much for granted in our lives. With Sonja’s parents having to part with her at such an early age, she never got to have some of the experiences we had as small children or even now. I don’t think I could ever actually fathom what the Holocaust was like. I could read on about it forever, but never really grasp onto what people had to go through. Hearing Sonja’s story gave me a better realization. A better understanding of what it was like to have gone through the Holocaust.
-Zdravka
I really enjoyed hearing her speak. I can't even begin to imagine what going through a time like that would have been like, especially not as a little child.
-Elijah
I got to hear Myra Kimmelmann last year and now I got to hear Sonja's story. I think that getting to SEE them helped me the most. We've all read stories but the fact that I saw them and talked to them makes it all the more real for me. If anyone ever denies the Holocaust I'll stand up and deny what they say. We can't let this horrible event be forgotten.
-Derek
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