Hannah Fisk - January 24, 1983
Being Reminded of War Experiences
Yeah. Do things ever happen today or do you ever see things today that remind you of your war experiences?
Well, the only thing um, um that frighten me is, you know, we brought a new generation kids, you know? And God forbid what's going on here, even America, you know, I mean, it's ridiculous. You know, that we should live through again this--God forbid, yeah um, I mean uh, it's enough we went through, we don't want our children to go through this. I don't think that people will be able to survive what we survive. I don't know to this day, where we take the courage, where we took the strength...
Mm-hm.
...to press through something like that, you know? It's--even I went through myself, like I told you before, but it's unbelievable, even to me.
Yeah. Hm.
I would like to see this now, that's why I chose the United States, because I could have gone any place I wanted to go after the camp. I figure for once, maybe I'm going to be uh, lucky, in uh, as a Jew, to be counted. But, let's hope. One thing I can tell you, they won't put us no more in a concentration camp. Because like our Bible says, "An eye for an eye, and a tooth for a tooth." That's what we learned, and that's what God bless our Israel. That's what they have to do. They--trouble for survivors, you see?
Sure.
'Til this day, I can't believe it, that we led ourselves like sheep, for walking miles and miles and miles and the chimneys were burning days and days and days and nights, they were burning with our people--innocent people--children. I tell you another incident. In 19...uh, 1939--'40. We were going from O?więcim to Sosnowiec, they were making Judenrein--that means without Jews. Gestapo came into my cousin. She had a tiny baby in her hand, has to be about maybe two months. And he says, "Fast, fast, fast, fast, fast," you know, and she tried to bundle the baby, too. He grabbed the baby, he throw it on the wall and the whole inside came out. And then she says to him, "Kill me, too, please. Kill me." So he grabbed her here by her neck and he throw her out. He did not kill her. He killed the baby.
Husband: I got a piece leftover but the rest is working.
Shhh.
Husband: I got a piece left over here.
Yeah.
And this was where?
This was in my mind for years and years and years. I could see that little baby. I don't think the baby was more than maybe two months old.
This was your cousin's baby?
Yeah, she tried to bundle up, you know, to go take her out.
Yeah. Yeah.
So sadistic.
Yeah.
You know? It's not--it's a human being without blood, without nothing.
Mm-hm.
To a little baby. I can see the whole, everything, coming out in my eyes. You know how much I went, I went through more, this little baby, than I went through with my own experience. I told this to the student in Wayne University.
And this was where? Where did this happen?
In 19...
Forty?
In 1940, yeah. In O?więcim, when I was going to Sosnowiec.
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