Just finished reading (in tears) And I Am Afraid of My Dreams by Wanda Poltawska, a woman who survived 4 years in Ravensbruck concentration camp. In her notes she writes: "My generation survived the shock of finding out that man can become inhumane, and this discovery might have led to despair, if it were not for the fact that those times also demonstrated that man can become in some sense superhuman - a hero. If he can become a monster, he can also become a saint, and this is as true today as it was then. So my story about the experiences of my generation is a warning for young people, because everybody can become like a member of the Gestapo, or on the other hand, like Maximillian Kolbe." She "prompts us to reflect; be careful, because it could happen that you will not even notice when you become insensitive to human misery, when you have become like an SS man. Think about it....humanity is not less threatened today than it was during the time of this story." Wanda not only survived the concentration camp, but went on to become a Psychiatrist and a close friend of John Paul II, serving on the Papal Commission on Family Matters. This story makes me appreciate the steadfast resilience of the Polish people and the ability to hang on to bits of humanity in the most inhumane circumstances. Would that my Polish genes carry me through should History repeat itself!
Posted on: Mon, 01 Jul 2013 02:44:40 +0000
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