Kestenberg Archive

MK gives an emotional testimonial in the form of a poetic essay. The original French manuscript is filed along with an English translation. MK was born in France and survived alongside her mother and two siblings. At 5 years, her father was taken prisoner. MK's mother then took the children into hiding in a cave. Shortly after, she smuggled them to an aunt's house. MK's mother then went in search for a long term arrangement. She recalls great distraught and feeling abandoned. At age 8, the mother and children were arrested and taken to Drancy for deportation. Men and women were separated. The Germans told them they were being taken to a castle. She recalls being severely frightened by the skeletal figures that met them at the camp. MK witnessed beatings. MK saved her bread ration to make a “cake” for her mother's birthday. Her mother was sick and detained in an isolation barrack. One day, MK went to visit her mother. A man beat her savagely at the fence and destroyed her (?). ; The mother reunited with the children and cared for them. She washed them in the snow and traded their possessions for food. MK sick with dysentery willed herself to recover to please her mother. The prisoners stood for hours in the snow, those that fell froze to death. At liberation, thousands of crazed women prisoners were set free. Only 50-70 survived. They behaved like animals, stealing and trampling each other. After the liberation they were taken by train and set free in a village, where they looked for shelter and food. They ended up in Tröbitz, in the Russian zone. MK suffered from typhus and was quarantined, along with her family. Eventually they returned to France and lived in a hotel. MK was reunited with her father. She was very afraid of people and barely spoke. MK's mother was mentally unstable and her father nursed them all back to health. Slowly they readjusted to normalcy. Later MK's baby brother was born. MK started first grade at 13 and caught up quickly. Her parents fought a lot and could not understand each other. MK's family was in a car accident that nearly killed her sister. After this her father became depressed. MK grew closer to her father after this but feels that it was too late. She met her husband via her parents. It was hard for her to be in a relationship and to love. Her husband is a demanding, critical person causing her additional emotional strife. After her father's death from cancer, she required tranquilization and went into deep depression. ; MK's father died of cancer and MK became depressed after this. She was treated with tranquilizers. She still suffers from anxieties and depression.