The Thing I Never Forgot

By: Sarah

I hate alarm clocks. I know that sounds weird, but everyone does now.
Here Ill tell you why. It all started on december 7 1941. I was taking a real
boring long division test. My twin sister Anna Lee was asleep on her paper.
Our desks were lined up in rows. So boring. Our green chalkboard,boring,
and the radiator behind me was making me NUTS!!!!!!!!!! She had every
right to sleep. This was really,really boring.Suddenly,I heard a noise. Rattat-tat.Then I peeked out of the window and saw an airplane with a star on
the tail. Ohhhhhhhhh it's so pretty! I whispered. What I didn't know
was that I would soon learn to really really hate that nine point star. After 10
minutes, I tentatively poked Anna lee to tell her that the test was over.
Later that day while we were walking home, I heard the rat-tat-tat again. I
was amazed!!! Look at that airplane!!!!! Anna Lee gasped. I nervously
smiled at Anna Lee and told her about the airplane I had seen earlier, A
nine point star? But that is a German plane, Mia!!!!!

I dropped all of my books. Why would they be here? I asked. This isnt
one of your crazy ideas where you once tried to take down a toy plane from
over the stove and burned off your toe, is it? Anna Lee grinned at me.
No, I mumbled. Then drop it she told me. We walked silently all the way
home.

Later I felt someone shaking me awake. It was Anna Lee. I didnt smell
breakfast so it couldnt be morning. All I heard was panicked voices of my
mother and father and the neighbors. Are the curtains tight? she asked
me. Yes I frowned wondering what this was about. My mother ran into the
room. Girls! Come with me to the air raid shelter, NOW! I scrambled to
find my glasses and then ran for my life. I rushed down the staircase. Anna
Lee followed behind me. You are so brave! I told her. She didnt respond.
Finally we got down to the air raid shelter. I remember when it was built but
I had never gone inside. It was an ugly room with metal walls and wooden
benches lined it. There were also 2 beds for if we had to stay the night.
There was some stale bread and some dried fish. That was it. It smelled as
if 1,000 people had run a 300 mile race. Yuck, I thought. Though I still went.
I was too scared to complain.
*
We stayed the whole night and finally came up at 1:05. We cautiously
marched up the stairs and looked around. One woman screamed. I wanted
to do that myself. I felt real dizzy and then, everything swirled around me
and then went black.
*
I still felt dizzy when I came to. How long have I been asleep? I asked.
Two days Anne Lee informed me. Then I looked around. There were white
floors, a white bed and white walls. The only thing that wasnt white were

the flowers on the table next to me. Then I realized something. Why am I
in the hospital? I asked. Because half of the apartment is either asleep or
sick Mum answered. We should probably go I said. I just remembered.
My home had been BOMBED. This is all my fault! my mother sobbed. Im
the one who made you two half Jewish! After Mum calmed down, we went
out into town to find a shelter. All we found was a huge hay thing, bales and
wood. We made a small hut of hay and wood.
*
We lived that way for a month. We scavenged for food and snatched at
pennies in the storm drains. Then one day Nazis stormed into the small
hut. My mother screamed and I threw anything I could find. It didnt matter.
They led us from the house, prodding us with their guns. We were pushed
into a stinky, moldy train then we were sent to a place with barbed wire and
a crude shack. I stopped in my tracks and asked one of the Nazis, Are we
living here?