Paper is more patient than man
Frankly….when I picked up Anne’s diary, my expectations were –
1. It is going to be a very interesting thriller story. 8 people living in a hidden apartment for over 2 years hiding from the German’s with only 1 coming out alive (as per the theme). I sincerely expected a
Stephen King.
2. It would tell me more about those horrific times of Hitler’s regime.
Least had I expected to be a “DIARY of a young girl”. A classic case of over(mis)expectation.
50 pages into the diary, I realized that it was Anne’s only friend with whom she shared her thoughts during those hard times. I was not too convinced that the sentences, phrases and the words used are those of a 13 year old kid. They were pretty refined and mature. As it was a translation in English, the translator took the liberty of doing it so. But can’t say the same about the thoughts expressed through them. They were definitely 13.
Ranting about food, hating her mother, growling about anything coming her way, jumping at slightest joy; she was a typical, totally confused kid trying to come to the new reality.
One thing which I really appreciated of Anne’s parents and other grown ups was to support the kids to continuously read and write which made all the difference.
I do believe that when you verbalize your thoughts and listen to yourself, your thoughts become more refined and you start choosing the right words to communicate. It’s like rehearsing in front of the mirror before the actor is to take the final shot.
I think the same started happening with Anne and by the November of 1943, she had grown into a mature young lady with more condensed and clear ideas.
She writes that the most striking part of her personality was that she can watch herself as an outsider and analyze her actions. Her analysis of the relationship with Peter, her change of attitude towards her mother, the letter she wrote to her father, all corroborate the purity of her soul and her honesty.
By the second half of the book, I was screaming at the back of my mind – God let the fact that she didn’t live through be wrong and wanted to jump to the last section to find out.
By the time I reached there, Anne’s undying spirit had taken over and taught me, that it’s not important to live a hundred years cheating your own soul.
If someone wants’ to read Anne’s diary, I would strongly recommend, not reading it for the content for it is the mistake I had made. The diary should be read for the unwritten. For understanding the fact that society is not important, important is one’s own honesty to oneself.
As I am still in the quest to find the truth in the ideas of Hell and heaven, karma, rebirth etc., but I am sure that all of them emerge from the same thought of honesty towards oneself.
While reading Anne’s description of the quarrels in the Secret Annexe, I realized that the concept writers of the popular TV shows – Big Brother and Big Boss must have read this book and tried to create situations closer to the ones in the book to incite the human mind. Two conclusions I derived was –
1. They can never be even closer to what Anne and the other 7 went through for 2 years as the times were horrific and were devoid of any leisure.
2. Winner of any of these shows have to be a strong spirited soul like Anne.
I really wished Anne would have lived longer for her thoughts would definitely have given us much more than what is left of her. At the same time I also wonder that had we found a diary of Peter, we would have got a real view into a boy’s life too.
May Your Soul rest in Peace.
