Anne Frank

In the Netherlands the 4th and 5th of May are days we remember the victims of the second world war. On the 4th we are all silent at 8th o'clock in the evening for two minutes, remembering all the victims of the war. On the 5th of May, it's liberation day, on this date in 1945 Holland was liberated from the German occupation which lasted for 5 years.

When I was about 11 years old I read Anne Franks diary for the first time and this book  really made a big impression on me. The way this girl that was about my age wrote about what happened to her in her life and the way she expressed her feelings, emotions and thoughts on paper, really moved me. An adolescent girl with all kind of 'normal' coming of age challenges in an extra-ordinary situation.  Every couple of years I read Anne Franks diary again and every time it makes me feel sad and hopeful at the same time. The way she could still be hopeful and optimistic despite of all the things happening to her and her family and to all the other people who were affected by the war, was and is something I still admire very much. The past week I read Anne Franks diary again and made a drawing.

During the time Anne and her family hid in the 'Achterhuis' (Backhouse'), they had a few very loyal helpers, that came to see them every day with food and everything the hiders needed. And that for almost two years, risking their own life. I've often wondered what kind of person I would have been in this situation. Would I have been brave and help others, risking my own life? I can only hope so, very much....The book doesn't have a happy end because the hiders were betrayed and Anne and the others died in concentrationcamps. Only her father Otto Frank survived and he made Anne's wish come true and made sure her diary was published and is now world famous.