The Diary of Anne Frank

Monday 

April 2, 2012

Dear Diary,

       The Diary of Anne Frank has taught me quite a few lessons. Looking at Anne's reactions to all that occurred around her, Mr Frank's genuine kindness and Miep's selflessness I can't help but feel compelled to change for the better too. 
        The actions of Miep Geis toward the annex members makes me remember one of my grandmother's sayings "Doing work with a grudging heart will only get you so far." I'm still amazed that Miep risked her life to help them. Many other people would have stayed as far from that situation as possible. Miep complied with almost all of their, sometimes selfish, requests and tried to make them feel comfortable. Miep's actions say to me that you should only do something for someone if you absolutely want to. I admire Miep's strong conviction for what is right. .
         Mr. Frank was the man of the annex. He kept everything in order, made sure everyone was fully aware of the rules, he wasn't exactly strict but he wasn't too lax either. Mr. Frank taught me that a leader must keep his composure otherwise the people he leads will become uneasy, and doubtful.
         Anne Frank showed me good virtue. It is hard to believe that, in the diary, she and I are only one year apart. She spoke words of wisdom. Anne was well beyond her years. The way she reasoned with the world as being in a pattern that will one day break sounded similar to something the Arch priest would tell me. 
         The Diary of Anne Frank taught me to be grateful for life, wheresoever it leads me. It teaches me to make the best of every situation and experience because as Anne said in her actual diary "the final forming of a person's character lies in their own hands." Reading the Diary of Anne Frank has allowed me to see the brighter sides of living so closely to my family. Although the limited amount of space gets to our heads and we quarrel occasionally, we're still together and we don't have to live in fear of a loved one being taken away. I've come to realize the importance of maintaining a close relationship with all of my family members. Life is short, so we shouldn't spend it arguing, we should make the best of it.
       
                                  Love,
                                      Aaleah

Miep Geis

Monday,

April 2, 2012

Dear Diary,

       Miep Geis was the woman who helped the Franks and the Van Pels survive in the annex. She provided them food, news and other supplies. Miep Geis put her life in danger for the sake of all the members of the annex, she too was an extraordinary woman.

Interview of Miep Geis

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jybUICycSKY

Anne Frank: The Animation

Monday,

April 2, 2012

Dear Diary,

I found this video on you tube. Its a description of Anne Frank in graphic novel style art. The video does not go into much detail, but its still entertaining =)

Love,

         Aaleah

The Victim: Reaction

Tuesday 

 March 27, 2012

Dear Diary, 

       Francis Duggan's "The Victim" tells the story of a grayed Jewish man who has survived the Holocaust. The old man doesn't want to hear one word uttered about the Holocaust. He shows people the tattoo of numbers on his arm, but he says nothing. The tattoo was supposed to say it all. I though of the times where I was eager to know the reason "why" of a situation, but a symbol was supposed to say it all. I recall not being able to comprehend the "symbol" and thus never knowing reasons "why". Duggan, in this poem, wishes to know the sufferings of this old man. He knows that a "Holocaust" occurred, but he had no idea of what people suffered through. The only connection Duggan had to that time was, I believe, was either his father or grandfather. 

Ink Number Tattoo

      The grayed Jewish man, however, wouldn't share his memories. Or rather he wasn't ready to share his memories. He was stuck in the mind set of trying to forget rather than growing from it. The old man needed time. He needed time to settle his memories and find solace in the past.

       "But i could picture living soul whose thoughts were with the dead."

    The grayed Jewish man might have felt guilty that he survived while others did not. He seems to dwell on those that died, which is part of the reason why he saw blocking out these memories as an easier route that accepting the reality.

        The author repeats the first stanza twice in the poem. Once in the beginning and another time in the end. Aside from added emphasis, I'd like to believe that at the end the Jewish man decides to share with the unknowing generation his painful memories, that they too might know.

   I enjoyed the poem, I felt that I could relate to Francis Duggan's feeling of wanting to understand but not being allowed to ask.

                

          Love,

              Aaleah *.*

The Victim

Tuesday 

March 27, 2012

The Victim

Some one mentioned the 'Holocaust' the old Jewish man said 'no'
Such word i do not wish to hear that happened years ago
Then he slowly folded up his sleeve and numbers etched in blue
Told of the sufferings he'd known and all he had been through.

A silence fell o'er one and all across the club room floor
And in his presence 'Holocaust' not mentioned any more
We had amongst us in the flesh one who had lived through hell
But i wish that he could have spoke of sufferings he could tell.

Don't mention 'Holocaust' to me with one wave of his hand
A silence fell o'er one and all how could we understand?
The agony he had been through, the torture and the pain
We did not mention 'Holocaust' no not to him again.

My heart went to that Jewish man who sought no sympathy
He wanted to block out his past as a bad memory
Don't mention 'Holocaust' to me and little else he said
But i could picture living soul whose thoughts were with the dead.

That night i did not sleep too well i had recurring dream
I watched the hungry slowly die, i heard the tortured scream
I saw a gray haired jewish man the sorrow on his face
And i was in another time a dark and a sadder place.

I woke and when i went to sleep the dream returned to me
Of Jewish man with tragic past who sought no sympathy
I see a young man in his prime with a hunger wasted frame
With numbers branded on his hand 'they'd robbed him of his name'.

Some one mentioned the 'Holocaust' the old jewish man said 'no'
Such word i do not wish to hear that happened years ago
Then he slowly folded up his sleeve and numbers etched in blue
Told of the sufferings he'd known and all he had been through. 

Francis Duggan

After Reading The Diary of Anne Frank Play.......

Wednesday

March 28, 2012

Dear Diary,

Today we finished reading The Diary of Anne Frank play in class. Upon finishing it, I felt a  "hunger for more" Anne's diary ended right before they had to leave as captives of the Nazis. Thinking about it now, Anne  Frank was very noble in handling her emotions when she and her family were caught . She only had five minutes, but she didn't cry, she wrote in her diary. I wished she could have  somehow continued writing while imprisoned . I wonder how she handled being at a concentration camp?

The Japanese adaption
of The Diary of Anne Frank

I think that part of the reason  why the Diary of Anne Frank  attracted so much attention was that a person of Anne's persona had written it. It's the diary of an outgoing, energetic girl forced into a life in hiding in which she grows in maturity. Her diary is a personal peek into society of that time.A time that historians  of the 1950's only had facts and statistics about.

I recall watching a  video clip, and in that video clip  the speaker said that other countries heard what was occurring in Europe, but didn't believe it.Even today, some people believe that the Holocaust was a farce that, despite the evidence, none of it happened. Anne's anecdotes proved that the Holocaust did in fact occur and that, because of it, millions of Jews fought for their lives.

Scene from The Diary of Anne
Frank play

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Mr. Frank was a father that cared so much for his children. Seeing his "Anneke" having to live a life in solitude must have made his heart break for her. Mr. Frank probably thought that Anne would be happy at the concentration camp because she'd be able to see the blue sky and walk in the sunlight. She would no longer have to hide. no longer  would she have to live in fear and hold onto who she is. She could be free.

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The last line in Anne's diary is "In spite of everything i still believe that people are good at heart." That was the last thing that Anne wrote in her diary. In those five minutes before  she'd be on her way to a concentration camp she wrote those words. This says to me that Anne had to be the most forgiving person you could ever meet. She could put Mother Teresa  to shame, that after all the Nazi's had done she could still hang onto hope in humanity.

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Love, 

Aaleah     

Tis' a Gift to be Simple

Wednesday 

March 21, 2012

Dear Diary,

       Gifts that cost nothing at all are hard to come by, but have significant meaning to the person that receives it.
If one year I decided to create cost less gifts for each of my family members it would probably be as follows:

For Mommy-

     My mom hates it how her touch screen cellphone presses against everything in her pocketbook. For my mom, using the leftover yarn in my room, I'd knit her a cellphone cover and embroiderer it with her name on the inside. My mom is very fond of knitting and embroidery, she'd appreciate it very much.

For Daddy-

Paper Jet

     My dad loves to fly airplanes. He was in the Air force and still carried a lingering affection for airplanes afterward. He still says that one day he'll buy a plane and take my mom, siblings, aunts, and me flying. For my dad, I'd make him a U.S air force jet. Of course it wouldn't be big enough that he could actually fly in, it would be much smaller, a model size. Using cardboard from shoe boxes and aluminum foil I'd make this jet for him.

For Tiju-

Sudoku 

      My only brother, Tiju, is a difficult person to think of gifts for. First off, he's a guy, I never know what to get for guys and I would need to get him a gift he'd actually use. Tiju is a computer science guy. He likes technology and science. I usually go to him for help with either math or science questions. Sometimes he annoys me and asks me seemingly impossible logic questions or philosophical questions, (what is truth?). For my dear brother, I'd create a compilation of the world's most difficult logic questions and puzzles. He'd be very intrigued  by my gift.

For Ariel-

Depend

      Ariel is my eldest sister. She and I have very much in common. We both hold a strange affinity to Asian things. She likes Chinese fans and dresses and I like Japanese anime and Kimonos. Ariel tries to learn the Japanese alphabet, but meanwhile she admires complex looking kanji. For my eldest sister, Ariel, I would give her a Kanji poster with characters for "can" and "depend" because they roughly sound like her name when put together.

For Denee-

Knit  Headband

      For my second eldest sister, Denee, I'd give her a uniquely sewn  hair accessory. My sister recently decided to "go natural" with her hair, but she complains that she hasn"t anything exciting to do with it. My gift to her would put a burst of fun into her everyday hairstyle.