What Facing History and Ourselves Meant to Me

In 8th grade when my class went on the trip to Washington D.C. we were told we would be going to the Holocaust Museum. I have always been interested in the topic because my grandmother seemed to talk about it nonstop; she would always talk about all of the different countries she had visited and Germany was never on the list of "Places I've Been". Naturally, I was curious how such a well traveled and well versed woman had never been to Germany. One day, I was stupid enough to ask why she had never been and I was not prepared for the emotional rant I was about to be taken on.

“I have never been to Germany because I still cannot fathom the repulsive, horrific, heinous things that took place there during the war. Uncle Bill tried to drag me to the Auschwitz camp while we were in Poland and I cried and stomped my feet like a small child because it was linked directly to the Germans and their disgusting crimes.”

I had known, obviously that my whole family had strong feelings of hatred towards what had happened in the 2^nd world war because my grandfather and his family were Jewish, but I had never thought that to this day my grandmother would refuse to step foot in the country where the root of the chaos took place.

While we were in Washington, we were only 13 years old, still young and naïve. When you enter the museum the staff gives you a card of a person living in Europe at the time of the war, and you travel through the museum learning about their story and their life. When I opened the card the name that appeared on mine was Hazel Seltzer. My grandmother’s last name is Seltzer. Whether it was true that we were related or not was unclear, but I was blown away that my luck would give me this card. I was so enthralled with my findings that I was blowing through the museum in amazement leaving everybody else that was laughing and smiling behind. I remember when I came to a room that was filled with shoes, actual shoes that were taken prom the prisoners at one of the camps, I sat down on a bench and started to cry. The emotions were overwhelming, and I think it hit me especially hard because I was convinced this woman was part of my family.

I kept the card with me until I got home, and showed it to my mom and grandma. Much to my surprise my grandmother started to cry. It was my grandfathers aunt. I had been right, she was a relative. This completely blew my mind, and would stick with me for the rest of my Holocaust learning experiences.

When I entered your classroom, I immediately had the utmost respect for you, it actually kind of scared me. You remind me exactly of my uncle, well put together, well versed, well traveled, and you demand the exact same things. I have always been taught to be respectful and courteous, and not judge anyone based on prejudices or despite what people say which is why I was so comfortable in the classroom. I felt that everything you were saying I had a strong knowledge of, but you took it to a new level I didn’t even think was possible. You made me think that I had been saying the wrong things all along which blew my mind. The things you were saying made so much sense and so little sense all at the same time. Nothing actually sank in until we started watching the films. When you started playing “Nazis: A Warning from History” my heart began to sink, because everything anyone had said and showed me before was being confirmed in my head. How such horrible things could happen to people made me sick to my stomach.

As the films continued, I began to realize more and more how important this class would be to my character. The way Amen and The Boy In The Striped Pajamas effected me emotionally was unlike any film had ever done before. By the end of the movies I was holding back tears, and the same thing happened for every film and reading that came our way.

No class or teacher has ever had such a powerful effect on me and I am forever grateful to you and the school system for that. This class has taught me to watch my words even when I am already conciously thinking of them and also to have the utmost respect for everyone and never be a bystander and let things pass me by. I would just like to say thank you to you especially, with everything I have in me, for giving me a new perspective of the world and of myself and my surroundings. I will always have a tremendous amount of respect for you and I admire you greatly as a person, and I think you are one of the greatest teachers I have ever had in my 13 years of school, so Thank You, Mr. Gallagher.