It was September 30, 1940 when the men came into our home a trashed it. I remember my father telling me to hide and so I did. At the time I was merely a boy. So had no idea of what was happening and why we had to hide. When my father said I could come out of hiding he said to look for my aunt. When we looked we could not find her. I was ten and immature then.

Today it was September 30, 1943. Three years ago today the men took my aunt. In that time they took many of my cousins and my uncle. In that time we went from having a joyous family of six to just my father and I. In that three years I learned that those men who took my family are called Natzi and the person who was leading them was called Hitler.

We had been going from place to place sleeping in a different spot every day. For the last three years.

“Hey, stop daydreaming we got to get to our next campsite before daybreak,”  snarled my father.

“Ok, on my way,” My father never became this nasty until they took my aunt that day.

“Hurry up.” he yelled.  

“Coming.” I responded.

“Get down and be quiet I hear them,” he whispered.

“What!” I yelled because I was mad at him.

Once I yelled that I regretted it. Then I heard some yelling in german.

“Run,” yelled my father.

I did run and ran and ran until I did not recognize the place I was in. I knew I was still in Germany. But I did not know where I was. At this point I was still running. Until I fell into a ditch. Then I sat there and cried for I was the one who got my father killed.  

By the time I had stopped running it had been getting dark. I was tired cold and wet for it had been raining when I got up last morning. I started to search for a place to rest my head and to my relief I had found a small cave to spend the night in. Once I got settled in in my cave I started to go though my bag. I had a map, compass, pocket knife, a pot, and finally a bow with some arrows.

When I got up in to morning was was awakened by men cursing things in German. As they grew louder and louder I crept farther and farther back into the cave. Until I could not see the light of day.

About an hour after the men came I stayed in the cave in the dark. I was hungry, I had not had anything to eat for two days. I poked my head out of the mouth of the cave to make sure no men were coming. Then I took my bow and an arrow and waited for a rabbit or some small animal for me to shoot. The time finally came and I shot and it fell over dead. I ran over to it and took my arrow out and make a fire so I could cook it. I cooked it and had leftovers for the next day. I went back to my cave to go back to sleep for the night. I woke up the next morning and stayed in my cave all day. My father would have been mad at me for not change places to sleep each night. That day I was thinking. About nothing in particular. Until it hit me that if I could make it to Switzerland where my Uncle lives I could be safe. I would start the journey the next day.  

The next morning I got up very early and started walking. Using my map of Europe and my compass. Around noon I took the remainder of my rabbit and ate it. It was cold but it was food. When the sun started to dip down under the horzen I found I river and filled up my pot and boiled the water so it was safe to drink. Then I walked a few more miles to find a good place to set up for the night. I found nothing. I continued to search for a place to set up camp. I found nothing. By this time is was pitch black outside and I could not see anything. So I decided to keep going. I was walking though the woods. Though the night I was tired and I was cold.

Once daylight came I went went to take a rest and fetch some water. However, I could not do that because I heard them a whole bunch of them. I gathered my things and found a hollowed out tree. That I climbed into.

“Where did that kid go?” I heard one of them say.

All of a sudden they stopped and they started to look around.

“Did you hear that?” one of them whispered.

“Lets stay here and invesigate,” another one cimmed in.

“Good idea,” They said.

I was relieved that some of them were talking to each other in english to I knew there plan and what they were going to do. For the rest of the day they talked in German. Walking around the woods. I could hear them walking around. The leaves crunching at their feet. By nightfall nothing had changed they were still there. I was hungry and thirsty and cold. I had no idea what they were doing outside my tree but they were still there. When I looked up the trunk of the tree I could see a knothole that I could see out of. I climbed up to it ever so quietly. And saw that they has set up camp I knew I would be in for a long night. I tried to close my eyes and go to sleep but I was too scared. Before I went to sleep a closed my eyes and prayed. Clutching my star of David while I fell asleep.

The next morning they were gone. So I started to walk and walk and walk. Until I could not bear my hunger and my thirst. So I ate and I boiled water to drink. Then I walked all day and all night. When it was morning again I boiled more water to drink and continued walking. I did not want to encounter any more of those Natzis. When night came I looked for a place to sleep but found none. I looked and looked untill the best thing I found was a dead bush. So I decided to set up camp inside the dead bush. For I had a water crossing into switzerland to next day. I woke up the next day to find that the water crossing was not a small river but, a small sea. At least it seemed.

I gathered wood and fastened them together with vine. I looked both ways on the river and saw guard stations yards away on both sides yards away but they could still see me. In the water on my raft. I needed I stopped and said to myself

“I need to make a ore.”

Then I went back into the woods to make my ore. To my surprise when I was done the sky darkened. So I debated with myself to cross the river now or in the morning. I later decided that both were risky but if I needed to swim to get to the other side I would need to not to get hypothermia when a made it over.

When the sun came up I took my raft and my belongings and set out to a better life. The water was cold but not as cold as it would be at night so I knew I made the right decision. I place my raft in the water and threw my bag on it. Then ever so carefully I climbed on to my raft grabbed my ore and started to paddle. To a better life. I was very lucky that the water was not choppy and very calm. The first half of the cross was going well.

“Hey you stop!” yelled one of the guards.

I started to paddle faster and faster. Until I heard a roar of an engine behind me it was a motor boat. I paddled faster and faster even when it felt like my arms were going to fall of I kept paddling. The I got bumped by one of the many boats chasing me. I fell down into the water my belongings behind me. And my Star of David. That my father gave me when I was merely a boy. Gone forever.

In the water I started to swim and swim deeper into the water and faster. I thought I was a goner and would be with my aunt and my family in the concentration camp. But I hit my head swimming so I swam up and looked to see I had made it. So I climbed out of the water to check out my surroundings. I saw the men chasing me turn around and go back I had made it. Then all of a sudden a made an l with my fingers put it up to my forehead and looked at them. My father would have been very ashamed by me doing this but I did not care. I made it to a better life.

I walked to my Uncle's house that I have visited a few times before the war. The walk was cold but worry free. I made it to the door I knocked. The door opened.

“Where's your father?” He questioned.

“Captured,” I respond.

“How did you get here?”

“It's a long story.”

“Then tell me all about it.”