Anne Frank (1) (1929–1945)

It was truly sad to read about Anne Frank having so much optimism for a future after the war that she would never have. And that her mother and sister also died in the Internment camps. And truly it seems that Anne could have had a very promising future as a writer. I was surprised to find a diary so well written and by someone as young as 14 and then 15. I wish I wrote as well in my diary entries. I love the way she interacts with her diary like it is a person she finds such solace in confiding in.

Anne was very reflective, particularly of herself. She had a great awareness of her strengths and weakness and strove to better herself. As I read, I began to remember what it felt like when I was younger and had the same kinds of thoughts and feelings as Anne expressed. It is a gift that Miep and Anne’s Father were able to save Anne’s Journal and share her story, as well as part of their stories, with the world. It gives a look into the life of one family affected by Hitler’s reign and his spread of Antisemitism. And though she had to die so young to this hatred and discrimination, her story was thankfully able to live on beyond her, just as she wrote about wanting for her future. Sometimes it is the connection to just one such person’s personal story that brings a better understanding of a such a large scale event in history.

By looking into Anne’s life as she tried to be a “normal teenager” whilst having to hide in fear before eventually being found by the secret police, we see many similar lives that had to be lived this way and that were taken too soon for these same reasons. At the same time, we are able to see through Anne’s story, not just the hate of antisemitism, but the courage of those who took in Jews in defiance of Hitler’s regime. The courage and optimism of Anne, her family, their roommates, and those who helped them, in the face of such hate, is indeed a story not to go untold.

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