Max's Mein Kampf

When Death was Near

February 16, 1939

For about two months I was in a fight against powerful death. Many things happened during my long sleep, Liesel told me about everything. I have very dim memories about the two months in which Death was at the end of my bed in the cellar. All the snow that Liesel had brought in with Hans made me very sick, the hypothermia that I'm so sensible to almost killed me, but thanks to this incredible family, I survived.

Liesel told me about how much she had read to me. She told me about all the thirteen gifts she had brought to me for Hanukah, and how her last gift had been tears, and her fear the I'd never come back, that I'd never wake up and talk to her and teach her again about words. She told me about how much she had read to me, she even mentioned that she had to steal books from the mayor's house to read them to me, hoping that those words would keep me alive, which they did. In my religion, the only thing that separates us from any other being is words, the ability to express our feelings and experiences through words is what separates us from clay. I told her that words are life, and thanks to her words, her read-aloud words, I was able to absorb that life. I told her that I was forever in her debt, and that I was very thankful for knowing a girl as good as her. I also thanked Hans and Rosa many times throughout the day. They told me about how upset they had been and how much they had feared that I was dead and that they had thought about what they would do with my corpse. They apologized. I told them that it was okay to consider what would be done in situations such as these.

They also mentioned that a guard had almost found out that they were harboring a Jew, and how they had put a Nazi flag on top of me to hide me, and I had almost been found. I could feel their fear as they told me the stories, and also their worry for me, and I noticed how much they had grown rather fond of me. They cared deeply about me, but I was risking their lives, and they feared about my life as much as they feared for theirs and Liesel's. That's when I felt it. I had to leave if I cared about them.