The name of the young girl is Anne Frank, an iconic figure in world literature and the author of the once-forbidden book, “The Diary of Anne Frank”.
Born on June 12, 1929, Anne Frank came into the world in a wealthy Jewish family in Frankfurt, Germany. When Hitler rose to power in 1933, initiating a wave of Jewish persecution, the Frank family was forced to relocate to the Netherlands. Anne’s father, Otto, a shrewd businessman, established a jam-making business in Amsterdam.
A life forever altered
The outbreak of World War II saw a swift change in their fortune. In May 1940, the German fascists occupied the Netherlands in just one week. Fear permeated the lives of Anne Frank and her family, with rumors of Jewish cleansing and concentration camps looming ominously. Otto, fearing the worst, began planning a secret annex in the loft of their company building. From the outside, this extra attic was difficult to detect. Otto turned to his colleague, Miep, a round-faced girl with big eyes who was known for her compassion and integrity. Aware of the risks, Miep agreed to help them.
On Anne Frank’s 13th birthday in 1942, she received a diary with a red and white cover and a small copper lock as a gift. From that day forward, Anne began to record her life in writing.
The bell of doom rings
On July 5, 1942, a Sunday, while Anne Frank was sunbathing on the roof, the doorbell rang. Hopeful that it was her young romantic interest, she was met instead with a visit from the Nazi authorities. They had come to inform Anne’s elder sister, Margot, to report immediately to the Eastern Labor Camp – their worst fear realized. The following day, the Frank family disappeared.
Life in the secret annex
Authorities presumed the family had fled to Switzerland. In reality, they hadn’t dared to embark on that perilous escape route, fraught with death and capture. Instead, they started their two-year period of hiding in the secret annex, where Anne Frank brought her beloved diary.
Eventually, eight people, including some of Otto’s Jewish friends, ended up living in the tight space. Strict rules were enforced for safety, such as whispering, not using water during the day, wearing socks to muffle footsteps, and only venturing into the office after work hours to listen to the radio. Their connection to the outside world was severed by a heavy bookcase equipped with a revolving mechanism. Miep and a few reliable colleagues were their lifeline, bringing them food.
Anne Frank’s world through her diary
In her diary, Anne documented their daily life in the annex. Like a sprouting seed crushed by a boulder, her growth was restricted. With no means to touch the outside world, her only direction for growth was the maturity of her inner world.
She named her diary “Kitty” and confided in it daily. Anne Frank shared her aspiration of becoming a journalist, inspired by a radio host from a Dutch resistance station. She expressed her doubt about her ability to write something remarkable someday. Among the extended family living with Anne was a young man named Peter, three years her senior. She shared her feelings for Peter with “Kitty”, discussing their teenage awkwardness and naivety.
Their relationship evolved in the confined space of the annex, with Anne Frank beginning to date Peter. Amid the constant stream of grim news from the radio about Jews, concentration camps, and gas chambers, Anne, a joyful girl, never lost hope, not even on the day when the Gestapo came to inspect the office.
One day, she heard a broadcast from the British Broadcasting Corporation urging the people in the occupied territories to write diaries and articles to record the true history of these dark and dangerous times, no matter how grim they might be. Inspired, Anne Frank’s diary took on a deeper meaning, embodying resilience and hope amid adversity.
See Part 2 here
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