Today, October 3 [should read September] 1942, it is exactly two weeks since the
horrible slaughter in Luck and its surroundings. For two gruesome weeks we - a few
Jews who had succeeded in escaping from Luck at the very last moment - have been
roaming about without sleeping at night, since death threatens us every moment. Out
of the forest and back into the forest. We have become forest men. It happens that for
two or even three days we are without a piece of bread, a drop of water. Our eyes are
no longer able to shed tears. The heart burns with pain, there is a pressure so strong as
to break it, and there is no help. We are all condemned to death.
My dear son David - God knows if he is still alive - your mother was like a dove when
they led her to the slaughter. I did not witness this with my own eyes; to my great pain
and despair fate willed that I should abandon my dear wife and son and escape alone
like a coward. However they are in a better position now than I am, they have already
gone through what they had to, and every moment I expect to be caught. I am sitting
in a dug-out in the forest where your grandfather used to live and I am writing both of
you a farewell letter. Maybe fate will not be so cruel after all and, when the war is
over, you will receive it by mail with the help of a goodhearted Gentile. Thus, I
embrace both of you - you and your wife - and I send you my fatherly blessing before
my death.
Your unfortunate father H.P
horrible slaughter in Luck and its surroundings. For two gruesome weeks we - a few
Jews who had succeeded in escaping from Luck at the very last moment - have been
roaming about without sleeping at night, since death threatens us every moment. Out
of the forest and back into the forest. We have become forest men. It happens that for
two or even three days we are without a piece of bread, a drop of water. Our eyes are
no longer able to shed tears. The heart burns with pain, there is a pressure so strong as
to break it, and there is no help. We are all condemned to death.
My dear son David - God knows if he is still alive - your mother was like a dove when
they led her to the slaughter. I did not witness this with my own eyes; to my great pain
and despair fate willed that I should abandon my dear wife and son and escape alone
like a coward. However they are in a better position now than I am, they have already
gone through what they had to, and every moment I expect to be caught. I am sitting
in a dug-out in the forest where your grandfather used to live and I am writing both of
you a farewell letter. Maybe fate will not be so cruel after all and, when the war is
over, you will receive it by mail with the help of a goodhearted Gentile. Thus, I
embrace both of you - you and your wife - and I send you my fatherly blessing before
my death.
Your unfortunate father H.P
My dearest children, Jacob and Erna Another terrible four weeks have passed. Today it is exactly six weeks since the gruesome events in our town Luck and the surroundings. Since then thousands of
Jews who had escaped were caught and shot dead. As for me, my bitter fate has preserved me for the time being, so that I may still suffer some time longer. As a matter of fact, mother and David are the luckiest of our whole family, they have already gone through what they had to, and they surely did not suffer such terrible moral pain as I do, having remained alive . These forty- two days have been awful. Only those who live are scared of death; for the dead it is a salvation. Thus, my children, imaging such a picture: I am sitting in a thick forest and fate willed that it should be exactly the same forest in which mother was born. An old, gray-haired man squatting on the earth; one would think that I was about seventy; my body is torn and bitten, and I have no shirt on, since I had to throw it away. I did not understand [until now] what a terrible plague the lice were with which Moses punished Pharaoh, as is written in the Pentateuch: "And the wise men could not stand before Pharaoh."* This means simply that the lice were eating them alive. Now I understand it, and it is an awful thing. How happy I would be if I could take a basin of hot water, do some washing, and put on a clean shirt and underwear; and then, may death arrive. That is that, my dear children. All is lost, but may I at least be the ransom for you, so that you, the survivors, the last spark left of our family, will not be extinguished. I am now in my misfortune, my comrade in distress was caught by the murderers on the second day of Rosh Hashanah, in full daylight; he had not been cautious enough. They tortured and then shot him. They search for me, too, they even trod on me in the stack of straw where I was hiding. Yet, for the time being, they have not succeeded. Since then I have been wandering alone at night from village to village, from tent to tent, from forest to forest. But the forest, unfortunately, has started balding, and I also am naked and barefoot, hungry and sleepy. I am walking like a sleepwalker without seeing my own shadow, I am wandering - where to, I myself do not know. Shall I succeed in staying alive? I am not at all sure. It is very improbable. One can still manage somehow, though . Your unfortunate father, Chaim Erratic |
Saturday, July 15, 1944
It's difficult in times like these: ideals, dreams and cherished hopes rise within us, only to be crushed by grim reality. It's a wonder I haven't abandoned all my ideals, they seem so absurd and impractical. Yet I cling to them because I still believe, in spite of everything, that people are truly good at heart. It's utterly impossible for me to build my life on a foundation of chaos, suffering and death. I see the world being slowly transformed into a wilderness, I hear the approaching thunder that, one day, will destroy us too, I feel the suffering of millions. And yet, when I look up at the sky, I somehow feel that everything will change for the better, that this cruelty too shall end, that peace and tranquility will return once more. In the meantime, I must hold on to my ideals. Perhaps the day will come when I'll be able to realize them! --The Diary of a Young Girl, eds. Otto H. Frank and Mirjam Pressler, p. 332 |
Tarnopol 7 April 1943.
Before I leave this world, I want to leave behind a few lines to you, my loved ones. When this letter reaches you one day, I myself will no longer be there, nor will any of us. Our end is drawing near. One feels it, one knows it. Just like the innocent, defenceless Jews already executed, we are all condemned to death. In the very near future it will be our turn, as the small remainder left over from the mass murders. There is no way for us to escape this horrible, ghastly death.
At the very beginning (in June 1941) some 5000 men were killed, among them my husband. After six weeks, following a five-day search between the corpses, I found his body…
Since that day, life has ceased for me. Not even in my girlish dreams could I once have wished for a better and more faithful companion. I was only granted two years and two months of happiness. And now? Tired from so much searching among the bodies, one was ‘glad’ to have found his as well; are there words in which to express these torments?
Before I leave this world, I want to leave behind a few lines to you, my loved ones. When this letter reaches you one day, I myself will no longer be there, nor will any of us. Our end is drawing near. One feels it, one knows it. Just like the innocent, defenceless Jews already executed, we are all condemned to death. In the very near future it will be our turn, as the small remainder left over from the mass murders. There is no way for us to escape this horrible, ghastly death.
At the very beginning (in June 1941) some 5000 men were killed, among them my husband. After six weeks, following a five-day search between the corpses, I found his body…
Since that day, life has ceased for me. Not even in my girlish dreams could I once have wished for a better and more faithful companion. I was only granted two years and two months of happiness. And now? Tired from so much searching among the bodies, one was ‘glad’ to have found his as well; are there words in which to express these torments?
Dearest Family,
You are extremely lucky to be living freely as citizens of the United States. I have been living in the ghetto, a sad place where I am punished for being who I am. And for being who I am, I have paid a terrible price. But I would not trade it for anything. However, I am content in thinking that someone will hear my story.
I’m going to tell you stories of the ghettos in hope that some day my story will be heard. If you did not know, almost every city includes a ghetto. Another fact about the ghettos is that not only are there Jews, but there are gypsies and anyone else who is against the likes of Hitler. The ghettos are almost like another city filled with people whom Hitler thought are outcasts.
I wonder every day when this war will end. It’s not right to judge, or discriminate people just because you can or because you want to. Do you know how many ghettos there are in the world? I know for sure that there are very many. There are big ones and small ones.
The Lodz Ghetto seems to be quite scary. The Lodz ghetto held 160,000 Jews at one time. There was a man, named Chaim Rumkowski who was called the ‘Chairman of the Council’. He was to carry out the responsibilities of the people in the Ghetto. He made the Jews work until they could not move a single limb.
It’s very sad here. No one has much hope. The SS police patrol the streets daily and nightly. I always feel trapped. But hopefully it will soon be over! On the flipside of things, I have met many new people and made some friends. Our neighbors, the Horton’s know someone who recently got deported to a concentration camp. It seems as if more and more people are leaving every day.
I’m scared but I know we will get through this. I’ve met some gypsies that were some of the first to arrive here, at the ghetto, and they’ve told me many stories on how it has evolved. It’s very interesting.
I’ve always wondered where people go once they get deported from the ghettos. They don’t let us read the newspapers here. After the deportations, the ghettos are always quieter or noisier. Some hide, so as not to be seen by the police and get deported, others go willingly thinking that their chance at survival is lost. I think that everyone has a chance if they are willing to fight for it. No one that I know has left yet. But it will probably be soon. Many of the gypsies have been deported- about 1,000 people.
In all I am doing quite well. It’s a little overwhelming at times but I’m making it through. I hope you take this letter and keep it forever so that if I don’t make it, you’ll be able to tell my story. The ghettos are getting smaller. The number of ghettos is increasing. And people are leaving every day. I hope you take time to consider this as a tribute to all those who have left. May there be peace between these countries once more.
Sincerely,
Your loving daughter
You are extremely lucky to be living freely as citizens of the United States. I have been living in the ghetto, a sad place where I am punished for being who I am. And for being who I am, I have paid a terrible price. But I would not trade it for anything. However, I am content in thinking that someone will hear my story.
I’m going to tell you stories of the ghettos in hope that some day my story will be heard. If you did not know, almost every city includes a ghetto. Another fact about the ghettos is that not only are there Jews, but there are gypsies and anyone else who is against the likes of Hitler. The ghettos are almost like another city filled with people whom Hitler thought are outcasts.
I wonder every day when this war will end. It’s not right to judge, or discriminate people just because you can or because you want to. Do you know how many ghettos there are in the world? I know for sure that there are very many. There are big ones and small ones.
The Lodz Ghetto seems to be quite scary. The Lodz ghetto held 160,000 Jews at one time. There was a man, named Chaim Rumkowski who was called the ‘Chairman of the Council’. He was to carry out the responsibilities of the people in the Ghetto. He made the Jews work until they could not move a single limb.
It’s very sad here. No one has much hope. The SS police patrol the streets daily and nightly. I always feel trapped. But hopefully it will soon be over! On the flipside of things, I have met many new people and made some friends. Our neighbors, the Horton’s know someone who recently got deported to a concentration camp. It seems as if more and more people are leaving every day.
I’m scared but I know we will get through this. I’ve met some gypsies that were some of the first to arrive here, at the ghetto, and they’ve told me many stories on how it has evolved. It’s very interesting.
I’ve always wondered where people go once they get deported from the ghettos. They don’t let us read the newspapers here. After the deportations, the ghettos are always quieter or noisier. Some hide, so as not to be seen by the police and get deported, others go willingly thinking that their chance at survival is lost. I think that everyone has a chance if they are willing to fight for it. No one that I know has left yet. But it will probably be soon. Many of the gypsies have been deported- about 1,000 people.
In all I am doing quite well. It’s a little overwhelming at times but I’m making it through. I hope you take this letter and keep it forever so that if I don’t make it, you’ll be able to tell my story. The ghettos are getting smaller. The number of ghettos is increasing. And people are leaving every day. I hope you take time to consider this as a tribute to all those who have left. May there be peace between these countries once more.
Sincerely,
Your loving daughter