No. 43

I’ll tell you first hand that when you meet a man who was forced to hide in an attic for two years with the fear of dying aching in his stomach you can barely breathe. Through his lips I watched this aged man whistle to the crowd “I wanted to live.” Then the slow tune of pain he endured during the Holocaust stared to unravel. Aaron Elster is well into his 70’s now but as a young Polish boy of Jewish decent during WWII he survived the hatred of Nazi Germany. Yesterday he spoke to an auditorium packed with middle school students in Carpentersville, Illinois, hoping to spread the message of hope. Elster’s movements were slow. His voice very chilling and his message clear: Any one person can change the world. If only we greeted injustices with such optimism. Elston no longer harbors hatred to the force that took his family or to the people who made him hide in terror. Two years without a shower, adequate food or sunshine, no smiling faces or warm embraces 10 year-old Aaron waited for his freedom. The war ended and the liberation Elster faced may have been bittersweet. If you are interested in the stories of people this world has made you should read the gentleman’s book: ‘I Still See Her Haunting Eyes” at www.aaronelster.com.