SECTION THREE: ARTICLES AND LETTERS
- Steve Sunderland on Miep Gies
- Bentley Davis: DEA report
- More Responses to Ellen’s Egypt Trip Report (note: party on Fri 1/22 to view photos and discuss trip. 5:00pot luck dinner; later, slide show.)
- Till Schilling, EFT wizard
Miep Geis: Gentle Educator, Fierce Battler for Justice
By Steve Sunderland
"I hate all Austrians and Germans!," Miep said with a bitter but quiet tone.
"But, Miep, have you forgotten," said her dear friend, Cor Suijk, then director of the Anne Frank Foundation, "you are an Austrian."
Miep looked up, distracted from her memory of the last day she saw Anne Frank and her family as they were carted off to the Westerbork transit camp on the way to the concentration camps. Miep gazed into Cor's eyes, and then shifted to look at me. And shruged.
This was my first meeting with Miep in 1987. We met in her comfortable second story apartment in Amsterdam, The Netherlands. With her was her husband, Jan, a retired social worker and former member of the Dutch reisitance in World War II. Surrounding us in their living room and spilling into the little dining room weres stacks of boxes with letters from children and teachers from around the world who had questions about Anne, her life and death, and questions about Miep, too. "I will answer everyone of these letters, somehow," she said with some determination. "The children must know about Anne and her diary and I will tell them, " Miep concluded.
Miep was uncertain and even uncaring about her place in the world. The universe had come to learn of her courage in taking care of the Frank family and the other families hidden in the "attic," the top floor of the warehouse previously owned by Otto Frank. It was only because she immediately scooped up Anne's diary, after the Nazi's had left the warehouse, that the world has had the lucky chance to read and reflect on Anne's diary. Thanks to the play and the movie about Anne, many people have a picture of Miep in their mind. Yet, in fairness, no picture or play can capture the spirit and soul of Miep, Jan and every one of the resistance fighters who tried, against unimaginable odds, to keep people alive during the occurpation of The Netherlands during the Nazi seige.
I had come to meet her as part of my work for the Anne Frank Foundation and with the hopes of having a group of Cincinnati teachers meet with her in Amsterdam in the following summer. A group of Cincinnati teachers had come together, along with Frank Harkavy, and Fr. Bruggerman, Cincinnati Interfaith Holocaust Foundation, to find funds for the trip Amsterdam and to one of the concentration camps. As teachers we wanted to either create a separate curriculum that focussed on Anne, and/or find critical materials to incorporate into high school classes about Anne and the Holocaust.
I shared with Miep that knowledge about Anne and the Holocaust was minimal in our schools. Indeed, most students and teachers were unaware of the killing of Anne in the Bergen-Belson concentration camp. The power of the words of Anne's diary, so personal, so intense, so hopeful, seemed to communicate to many a belief that this writer was indestructible. As teachers, we worried about sharing a message that said that Anne had died, and her hopefulness was incorrect. Miep nodded her concern and said that many Dutch people either didn't care about Anne or were unsure about her death. Miep's book about her experiences with Anne had recently been issued and she related that some letters to her were angry about her "stirring up old wounds." " We all have a lot of remember, a lot to understand and be responsible for, and a lot to learn," she said to Cor and me.
The Dutch experience in the Holocaust was little known and understood. Following the invasion of The Netherlands in May, 1940, the Dutch resistance fought for a while but finally stopped when Hitler threatened to bomb one of the great cities, Rotterdam and kill thousands unless the Dutch capitulated. Followings the Dutch surrender, many of the Nazi laws about discriminating against Jews went into effect. Jews were required to wear a "Star of David" whenever they went into the streets, Jewish businesses were closed, children were forced from schools, and colleges began to spout Anti-Semetic doctrines. Many Jews tried to leave but were caught in the web of Nazi regulations. As the Nazi prepared to empty The Netherlands of Jews, they set up the Jewish Councils. These groups, composed of Dutch Jews, had to come up with a list of Jews that were to be sent to "Work Camps in the East," a Nazi euphemism for identifying the Jews to be sent to concentration camps. Anne's sister, Margot, was on such a list. Finding out this horrifying information prompted the Franks to put their secret plan of hiding into action. And, so in July, 1942, the Frank family entered the top floor of the warehouse and hoped to outlast the war.
Some of my questions for Miep concerned Anne's energy and her dedication to her diary. "How could she keep going, writing so much, keeping her hopes alive and not being overcome by the fear and anxiety of living in hiding?, " I asked Miep. "Anne never lost hope, never gave up, never stopped being curious about the movement of the Alied troops and whether they were close to The Netherlands," Miep said. Cor added: "But Miep, she kept her hopes alive because of you, because you visited every day with food, newspapers, and information about what was happening in the war. You were her hope." Miep refused to accept this acolade. She argued that she was merely a friend of Anne and her family. She insisted she did nothing unusual, and "nothing she wouldn't have done for any friend." "I was their close friend. I had no choice. Did I?", she asked. I argued with Miep and Jan that so few Dutch Jews were saved, so many turned over to the Nazis, and so few Jews were left at the end of the war that she really couldn't say that what she did was not heroic, extraordinary, and amazing. (Ninety percent of the Dutch Jews were taken and killed in the death camps.)"Nonsense, Steve," she quicky replied. "I am a plain person and did what I had to do."
We continued our talk for many hours, eating a large bowl of Dutch chocolates, until I had asked all of my questions except one. I knew from Cor that Miep's grief continued and that each August, on the anniversary of the Nazi's taking of Anne and her family, Miep went into a period of mourning. I wanted to know how she was doing now that Anne's book had been around the world and that her own book was helping to tell the story of Anner and Miep's courage. "I continue to be angry," she said. She paused. "I should have gone with Anne and Otto and Edith. I would have helped them in the camps. I was spared because I was an Austrian. How stupid. I miss my best friend, Anne, and I shall always miss her," she concluded. Tears were rolling down her cheeks, and Cor's face and Jan looked sad. We hugged, took another piece of farewell chocolate, and headed out into the cloudy afternoon. I knew that I had met a great soul. She will not be forgotten.
DEA reports
On the national front, Martha Coakley in MA is facing a tough race against right-wing Smith for Kennedy’s old senate seat. Coakley has a strong progressive record. The election is on Tuesday. If you know anyone in Massachusetts, urge them to vote in this crucial election.
This Saturday, there is the Immigration Reform rally – information about this is posted elsewhere in the salon notes.
On Monday January 25, there will be a meeting kicking off Sierra Club’s Green Energy Campaign – to encourage the passage of the climate change bill. The meeting will be at 7pm at the First Unitarian Church on Linton St. You can click here to RSVP. Direct questions to Nathaniel Meyer, o: (513) 277-0414 or c: (207) 576-8513.
As always, if you have any questions about local, state, national, or international political issues, please feel free to contact me. Bentley DAvis <bentleysdavis@gmail.com>
Letters: more responses to Ellen’s Egypt Trip Report (see it at www.lloydhouse.com, follow link.)
From Lauren Hanisian
Hi Ellen,
I just re-read your Egypt journal. How wonderful to have communed
with Ramses IV, and the deep tone answering your own. I enjoyed
reading your observations and thoughts, especially about the ancient
Israelites' march out of Egypt through the desert. There's no doubt in
my mind that they were definitely enslaved in Egypt for a long time.
Just because there's no record of it doesn't mean much. The ancient
Egyptians had more important things to record.To them, the Israelites
weren't a nationality; they were just slaves like all the other slaves
brought to Egypt from conquered areas. And then there's the
destruction of the great library at Alexandria. There might very well
have been mention of them in records kept there, gone forever.Anyway;
I got a good laugh out of your observation that the race of the
ancient Egyptians is gone, but there you were, a Jew, standing in
their place...free.
.......................................
From Diane Fishbein
dear ellen a snow filled day here and I finally took the time to read in full your wonderful Egypt report. How generous you are to take the time and share. Here's to a great year ahead. Love from Diane
........................................
From Jim Kesner (our Tri-State Treasures treasurer)
Thank you, Ellen.
Some of those photos were stunning. I am especially taken by the first one and the one of the charging militia men. Looks like you had a marvelous trip.
Thank you for all you to to enrich our community. My best wishes to you for a prosperous and happy New Year.
Jim
Till Schilling, EFT healer coming here
EFT, "Emotional Freedom Technique" teacher coming to Salon Jan. 20
I just (1/9/10)met Till Schilling (www.tappybear.com)(till@tappybear.com), a German-Bolivian-American pharmacist, friend of Sergio Contreras (salonista and former Lloyd House resident) who is all lit up about EFT (emotional freedom technique) and has been for six years. According to Wikipedia, "Emotional Freedom Techniques (EFT) is a form of alternative psychotherapy, that purports to manipulate the body's energy field by tapping on acupuncture points while a specific traumatic memory is focused on, in order to alleviate a psychological problem."
Till is a handsome, personable 40-something man who lives with wife and two daughters in a farm in south/central Indiana. From a pharmacist family, he trained in the US as a pharmacist, fell in love with a Hoosier lady, and settled in Amish country. Six years ago he caught fire with EFT. Now, I had heard about EFT more than ten years ago as a very powerful psychotherapeutic intervention that was deceptively simple. You just tap on certain places on your head, chest... and at the same time, connect with the negativity.
He does 50 minute sessions via phone or internet, and gives workshops all over, teaching people to do it for themselves and to teach others. HIs fee is $180 for three individual sessions; $150 for the Level One workshop (Thurs and Fri evenings, all day Saturday), which is reasonable.
Till's family immigrated to Bolivia from Germany after the first World War. He speaks English with no accent (!). His energy is friendly, approachable, and very clear. This guy is a healer.
He told stories about bringing the technique to cancer wards at children's hospitals with remarkable success. When the children are no longer terrified (thanks to EFT and the "tappy bear") they respond much better to the therapy.
He claims to be able to cross multiple time zones without jeg lag thanks to eft.
Interestingly, one uses the same ten acupressure points regardless of the nature of the problem, and it is not necessary to tap in any particular sequence. I just went through an elaborate procedure for jet lag using acupressure points, but his method is just to use these ten points, in any order, for 2 or three minutes while looking at the clock (time of destination location) and presto! No jet lag at all. He recommends showering also as soon as possible after landing.
He says just about every physical complaint has an emotional aspect; release the emotional "knot" and you can heal the complaint, sometimes with lightening rapidity.
I urge you to come to the Salon on Wed. 20 Jan and meet Till, let him teach you his technique right here at the table. You may want to enroll in the workshop that will be held in March here at the Lloyd House if we get at least 6 enrollees.
This guy is neat!
ellen
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