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We had a guest speaker come to our school today. His name was Joseph Hirt, and he was a Holocaust survivor.

He had lived eight months at Auschwitz--one of the most famous Nazi concentration camps. He began telling the story of his life to us. He talked slow. Rather quietly. He was Polish, and his voice still had an accent, despite that he had been in the United States probably over sixty years. He told us of his experiences at Auschwitz, and I will type as much detail as I remember. He had only just turned sixteen when he was deported to the camp. He was about to ride a clipper to Lisbon, Portugal where he would then head to New York City, United States of America, but he was captured the day before he was going. The trains were crammed on the five day, four night journey to Auschwitz, and there was barely enough room for everyone to stand, let alone sit. Children cried, for there was no food or water. The air was thick with the smell of urine and sickness, as they prisoners had no were to go and were not allowed off until they arrived. He was separated from his family somewhere during the trip. Once the trains had arrived, selection began. Nazi Soldiers made all the men take off their trousers and underwear to examine them, because at the time Jewish men were circumcised. So, whenever the soldier saw a circumcised man, he would shoot the man right there and then in the head. This went along. Joseph Hirt was third to last, and just when the Nazi was headed toward him, a voice sounded telling everyone to hurry. He was saved. People lived in these conditions for a long time, and if someone made a mistake in any way, they were killed. These people faced so many hardships. During counting, men had to stand for up to eight hours, or even more. Stealing was not tolerated. If someone was caught stealing, they were dead. Joseph Hirt mentioned that a young man had gotten so unbelievable hungry that he stole a bowl of soup. He was caught, and hung in front of every man. Another man was beaten until his intestines were falling out. He was forced to walk a distance and held his insides until he reached the end. He died. People were also only allowed to go to the lavatories twice a day and only when instructed. Some people during counting tied their pant legs, so if they had to go, they went without the soldiers knowing. If they had to go during the night, they had to use their bowls. The bowls they ate their food out of. Drank out of. And there was nothing to sanitize it. And if right now you're thinking that that is disgusting, you are right. But not because of the uncleanliness, but because of how they lived. And they lived like that for every waking moment of their stay in Auschwitz. They had to think about death on a daily basis and pray to God to let them live one more day. Joseph Hirt finally made a decision one day that he could not live there any longer. He had to escape. He stole some bread and salami from the kitchen and ran for the fence. He had found a hole in the ground that a dog dug, and right when he was about to crawl through, he felt a foot on the back of his neck. The man grabbed Joseph Hirt by his hair and said, "Gotcha." The Nazi led him towards the wall where people were shot, but Joseph Hirt decided to take a chance. He asked the Nazi if he had children. A wife. A family. And to his surprise, the Nazi pulled out his wallet and showed pictures of his family. Talked about them. Joseph Hirt asked, "How would you feel if someone killed your family? Are you going to let me face the same fate?" The Nazi stopped and pointed to a mound of snow. "I am going to relieve myself. If you are still here, when I am back, I will kill you right here." Joseph Hirt ran for the fence, and made it through. He kept running until he finally made it to a farm. It was the first warm area he had been since he was captured. And he was saved again. He thanked his guardian angel, and stayed the next few nights there until his food ran out. Eventually he approached the lady who lived in the barn, and she felt for him and took him in. He was fed, took care of, and treated. A underground railroad type of escape was planned for him, and he made it to Italy--his favorite place to be. And where prisoners were not killed. The day of the liberation of the camps at Italy, an ally grabbed him by the hair, and yelled at him in a language he could not understand. The Indian man was just about to behead Joseph Hirt with his sword, when another man came and yelled at the Indian. He pointed the gun to the Indian's head, and the Indian finally retreated. Joseph Hirt was saved yet, once again.

He finally made it to America, and he lived a successful life. At first he suffered from guilt, wondering why he, of all people, lived. He hid his story for a long time before finally telling others. He opened a school for the mentally disabled, and he taught Italian at many universities. And of course, he traveled and told his story to people.

This man spoke over 8 different languages, and he was a husband and a soon to be author. He is an inspiration to all. His story made me feel horribly selfish. Here we are, complaining about being grounded--no computer, no television, no going out--and here is he. Survivor of the Holocaust. It feels shameful to even think of comparing our misfortunes to his. We have it so easy, yet we still want more. He told us that we were the future. And he hoped we would remember him and the Holocaust. Tell our children, our companions. At the end, he smiled. It was such a lively smile. He, even though faced with death almost every day at a point, was still happy. I tried so hard not to cry when he smiled. It took so much energy to prevent a tear from falling. I got to shake his hand and thank him. And he told me "No, thank you."

While this man was telling us his story, there were some people playing on their cellphones, some sleeping, and even some were almost on top of each other making out. It was disgusting and so, so rude. It made me feel sad that while he is telling us of his life, some people don't appreciate what he went through. I sat listening, in the front row, contently. I heard everything he said, and I really hope I will remember everything. He is publishing a book soon, so I will be sure to buy it. He told us he had a website, but he did not tell us what it was. I really hope I will see him again someday.

Thank you, Joseph Hirt.