Well, its time to try something different, so as I read Thane Rosebaum's book 'Elijah Visible'; which is a series of nine postmodern tales about a young corporate lawyer climbing the ladder of
success who is constantly being haunted by the experiences his parents went through in the holocaust.
After I read each one, I'm going to post a brief review of that story, plus attempt to find a personal story that has some kind of link to it ...... it will definitely not be in the context of the holocaust since I know of no family member even remotely involved in that, though my Mennonite heritage does include German extraction. Maybe you can think of a personal illustration too?
Story #1: 'Cattle Car Complex' [pg.3-11] Young Adam has worked overtime, something he tries not to do, because of his fear of being alone in the dark. He always tries to leave work pretty much when everyone else does. But this night, due to circumstances he's the last one to leave his work area, and then he gets on the elevator and it has a mechanical failure. 'Condemned to living a sleepless nightmare, he began to pace like an animal. His breath grew stronger and more jagged. He tore his glasses from his face and threw them down on the elevator floor. An unbalanced goose step shattered the frames, scattering the pieces around him. Dangling in the air and trapped to all his arresting fears.'[p.6] Adam's fears overtake his sanity, and even though he is being talked to by the night security guard while he is in the elevator he still can not think rationally, and remembers some of the camp horrors expressed by his parents. Let alone his fears, being trapped in an elevator is not a happy experience.
A month before my newest grandson was born [7 wks old] my daughter-in-law, and two grandkids from the big-city-east were trapped in an elevator in a department store for between 2-3 hours. My granddaughter [6yrs old] understandably grew very worried, it was my 2 1/2 yr. old grandson that tried make it a not so negative experience. Maybe it was because he didn't understand the gravity of the situation like his pregnant mother or yet knew to be scared because they couldn't get out, like his sister was ..... who knows, but it has definitely left my granddaughter frightened of elevators. One wonders if one day in the future, should she get married, would she stay away from elevators while she was pregnant?
success who is constantly being haunted by the experiences his parents went through in the holocaust.
After I read each one, I'm going to post a brief review of that story, plus attempt to find a personal story that has some kind of link to it ...... it will definitely not be in the context of the holocaust since I know of no family member even remotely involved in that, though my Mennonite heritage does include German extraction. Maybe you can think of a personal illustration too?
Story #1: 'Cattle Car Complex' [pg.3-11] Young Adam has worked overtime, something he tries not to do, because of his fear of being alone in the dark. He always tries to leave work pretty much when everyone else does. But this night, due to circumstances he's the last one to leave his work area, and then he gets on the elevator and it has a mechanical failure. 'Condemned to living a sleepless nightmare, he began to pace like an animal. His breath grew stronger and more jagged. He tore his glasses from his face and threw them down on the elevator floor. An unbalanced goose step shattered the frames, scattering the pieces around him. Dangling in the air and trapped to all his arresting fears.'[p.6] Adam's fears overtake his sanity, and even though he is being talked to by the night security guard while he is in the elevator he still can not think rationally, and remembers some of the camp horrors expressed by his parents. Let alone his fears, being trapped in an elevator is not a happy experience.
A month before my newest grandson was born [7 wks old] my daughter-in-law, and two grandkids from the big-city-east were trapped in an elevator in a department store for between 2-3 hours. My granddaughter [6yrs old] understandably grew very worried, it was my 2 1/2 yr. old grandson that tried make it a not so negative experience. Maybe it was because he didn't understand the gravity of the situation like his pregnant mother or yet knew to be scared because they couldn't get out, like his sister was ..... who knows, but it has definitely left my granddaughter frightened of elevators. One wonders if one day in the future, should she get married, would she stay away from elevators while she was pregnant?
Just as Mr. Rosenbaum's stories remind us of the lingering effects of the Holocaust upon succeeding generations, I believe experiences in our lives, can lie dormant for years and then in unexpected times come back to influence us.
Next segment: Chapter #2: Romancing the Yohrzeit Light
Next segment: Chapter #2: Romancing the Yohrzeit Light
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