Lisa Kallai - January 28, 2008
Feelings on the Holocaust
It's a good question. I interviewed someone yesterday whose name is Hannah and who has written a memoir called Suitcase so at first we thought it was that book but it turns out they're not the same thing.
You seem to know the book Hana's Suitcase, have you seen it?
Well we looked it up...
You looked it up.
...because of that yesterday. I haven't read it but I will when I get home.
It's a children's book but it, it...the Japanese and George, the brother travel all over the world and they lecture on tolerance and uh, this book...that book just does it.
Well, I felt it was something similar with Schindler. It's, it's easier to enter into that exper...experience of the Holocaust through a positive figure...
Yes.
...and so people were more willing to...
But here there is no figure here, I mean, you know it's things, you know, what did the girl...well it's her story but uh, it's the story of one girl but uh, I suppose in the same different way but the way that Anne Frank appealed...
Yeah.
...a different kind of appeal but, uh...
Um, so you've, you've obviously thought...read about the Holocaust in general.
I have read about it but I must admit that it's small doses. It doesn't help anybody anymore and I find it hard to cope with it but obviously I've read some. I can't, can't avoid it but...
You've coped once, you shouldn't have to cope again. Is there any sort of routine trigger daily that touches off memories of that, that time?
No.
Nightmares?
No, no. I mean, I used to have them when I saw a film connected with the Holocaust, when I read something that's why I said I took it in small doses.
But when you see a baby you don't think of a baby that was on the train...
No, no, no, no. There have been too many babies. I'm a baby ???...
Do you have children?
Yes.
How many children?
Well, I biologically I have one son but together with my husband we have five and we have sixteen grandchildren so I have seen quite a lot of babies.
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