My name is Benjamin, I am 15 years old. My family and I used to life in Warsaw. The day German troops attacked our country was just a regular one. It all began in the morning on 1 September 1939. We were just having breakfast, gathered around the table in kitchen, dad was reading a newspaper. Suddenly, sounds of gunfire and screams appeared. First, we thought that it was some kind of a joke or theatrical action. But it was not it. We saw hundreds ofscared people running away from the source of strange sounds, and militia was gathering it’s forces.
Couple hours later German military guy knocked on our door. He had a gun, forced us to pack lightly and move to the place of gathering (square in the middle of the town). Once we got there we met hundreds of other families, just like us. They forced us to get in the trucks and moved out of town. I was really scared. I did not understand why did we have to go and where we were going. Some people said that they treating us like that because we are Jews, because of our beliefs. Germans explained that they will move us to the safe place, different town.
That was not true. They took us( as I have understood later) to a forced labor concentration camp named “KZ Warschau”. Living conditions were horrible. We were put in barracks with 10 other people in the room. My parents had to work everyday from 6 am till 8pm. I could barely see them. After we have stayed there for 2 weeks I noticed that people that we used to know started to disappear. It only took us another day to understand that they are not going to come back!
They were killed just outside the camp! After that I decided to escape with my family. We planned to get into the Dairy truck which came each morning 8 am. Unfortunately only I made it to there. My mom and dad were shot by the guardian on the way to the freedom. I just sit there and stare at them. That was the most horrible day in my life. I was lucky to get away from that camp. I managed to get to Krakov, where my aunt lived. They were hiding out from German authorities with other families.
We successfully stayed out of sight till 1944 when Soviet troops liberated us.
I grew a lot since that day in September. I have lost my friends and family, I still do not understand the reason for Nazis to do so. I have plans for the future to get educated and take care of my aunt just as she did during occupation.
War is the scariest thing.
Works cited
"Poland - World War II." Country Studies. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 May 2013. <http://countrystudies.us/poland/15.htm>
medicine., law from practicing. "The History Place - Holocaust Timeline." The History Place. N.p., n.d. Web. 26 May 2013. <http://www.historyplace.com/worldwar2/ho
