A Horrible Lesson

Watching a documentary about the life of Anne Frank–Anne Frank Remembered–that includes powerful first-person accounts from Auschwitz survivors.   One of the women talked about arriving in Auschwitz on the train and the horror of having to stand naked in front of the German guards.  It went against all her values and she said that she learned at that moment that her values were no longer important.  She had to learn a whole new set of beliefs and values, and, she said, if you didn’t learn them, you would die.  Another woman comments on how the horror became somewhat commonplace.  The first time she saw the cart of dead bodies, she looked away. The next time, she noticed but was not as frightened.  Finally, the third time, she didn’t even notice.  Her brain, she said, was learning a new way of living.

One thought on “A Horrible Lesson

Leave a Reply