Continued from page 1 either from Anne Frank’s diary, historical documentation about what happened in Holland during that time period, and some secondary sources from women who were able to tell about what Anne Frank went through. And as a writer whatever poetic license I incorporated. For instance Mordechai, a character in the book, there is no historical basis for. But I used him as a person that I truly felt had historical basis. He was a man who was interested in the Zionist movement, and there were such individuals who left Europe through clandestine means. Did she know a Mordechai? Probably not. Was there a person such as Mordechai? Most certainly. DFN: What does Margot bring to the table? Is there a part of the Margot story that will add to the Anne story? MAM: Yes. When we hear from Anne, it is pretty much one sided. It is her perception of her reality. And sometimes in order to fully understand that reality, we need to hear a sister voice. So what is interesting about this book is that we understand Anne more through Margot. Why does Anne seem to feel so energetic? What is she trying to achieve? What is going through Anne’s consciousness? Margot is trying to understand her sister. DFN: Margot was her older sister. MAM: Yes. Margot was the older sister, but in many ways Anne was more socially adept while Margot was more into herself. So the two sisters had very different types of realities. They had different lives. But to really understand Anne, we have to hear from the more observant type. Margot was very observant. DFN: Your book is written in the form of a diary as well. MAM: Yes. It is a similar format, but unlike Anne’s, it is not dated. And the reason why it is not dated is because Margot writes in her diary that she feels that time is an occurrence of movement and it’s on going. The past eliminates the present and the present cannot understand the future. But time is something she doesn’t feel is necessary to indicate in her diary. She also doesn’t hide the
identity of any of her compatriots such as the doctor, whereas Anne is more circumspect as to whether she should include their names. Margot feels if we’re going to get caught, we’re going to get caught together, so she doesn’t hide their names. DFN: What are the similarities and differences in the personalities of Margot and Anne as far as how they view their future? MAM: The main similarity is that they have a lot of fear. They have fear of the unknown, fear that they might get caught. There were a couple of instances where they had break-ins, before they were found out. And it really rattled them. They also both had confusion as to what’s going to happen to them both after the war. Is Margot going to become a mid-wife or will Anne become a journalist? Is there a real future for them? That they certainly shared. Anne was more of an individual who wanted to live the big life, whereas Margot was more interested in living internally through her own consciousness and her own world as well as sharing with others in a very intimate moment which is the moment of the delivery of a child. DFN: Why do you think the Diary of Anne Frank made such an impact? What was it that moved people? MAM: I think it was the transformation of Anne. When we first meet Anne in her diary she is a young girl who is very concerned with the mundane. This boy, does he like her, this girl, what’s going on in school… simple issues. And then because she is forced to grow beyond her years, her perception of life becomes so deep with such a tremendous understanding that she becomes an old soul so quickly. All of us throughout life go through a
process where we learn to understand. With Anne, it was so sad that her life was cut short and the tragedy of her passing is that she wanted to live a life of depth and meaning. DFN: Without spoiling any of the story in the book, does Margot go through any transformation? MAM: She does. What’s interesting about Margot is that her transformation occurs first on the intellectual level and then we see it more on the emotional level. Whereas Anne was always Wh very emotional. DFN: Tell me a little about you, Mazal Aloufabo Mizrahi, the author. Mi MAM: I am an individual, mother of three children, a am teacher, a hard worker, and tea I’ve always been fascinated I’v with literature and writing. wi have a BSA in writing and Ih a Masters in literature. I’ve lived in Brooklyn for most liv of my life. I was born in Jerusalem; my parents are Je Israeli. Is DFN: What makes you wake up one day and w come up with this concept, which is rather innovative, emotional and industrious to say, “Let me write about Margot Frank.” No one has thought of that. What makes you think of such a thing? MAM: We all go through our own emotional movements in life. Before I started writing about Margot Frank I was going through a different type of movement in my life. I just had a baby and I was questioning my career and want to go into midwifery and started to take courses at Brooklyn College. I studied chemistry, physiology and I was really very moved by the whole birth experience and I wanted to become a part of that sharing with others and become a part of that arrangement with G-d to bring new life into the world. Unfortunately with regard to my personal life, it wasn’t very practical financially. At the same time I started picking up
the Diary of Anne Frank, I constantly would reread her work because Anne Frank to me is an individual who enlightens and inspires. I liked rereading it to see what she is thinking and to find some type of message for myself. While I was reading, and I think it was really from Hashem, I started noticing that Margot is silent and absent from the diary and it started to bother me a little bit. I said, “I don’t understand, I know so much about Anne, but who is this Margot? Who is she? What is she?” And then I noticed that Anne said in one of her entries in 1942, early on, that “Margot and I, we share our diaries and we like to read to each other what we write.” I thought, “Wait, that’s while she was in hiding? Are you telling me that Margot also kept a diary?” And then one thing led to another and then I thought this is the book that I always wanted to write. I relate to Margot; she was a young woman; she was Jewish; she’s interested in midwifery; let me see where this takes me. DFN: What do you hope for from your readers? What transformation should happen to your reader? MAM: It’s a very good question. The number one thing I would want the reader to leave with is the sense of unfathomable loss because the silent sister represents the six million silent voices. Anne Frank is the voice we actually have. But what about all those voices we will never hear again? We have lost a community of voices… doctors, lawyers, beautiful people, children with so much potential… all destroyed. That would be on the deepest level. Another message would be is the sense that we all have dreams and it is our right to try to fulfill them. There is no one individual who should take that away from anyone. Whether it is an external force, unfortunately, such as the Holocaust or an internal force such as a person against himself, we all have the right to fulfill a dream. And Margot’s dream to live in Palestine, in Israel, to become a midwife, that’s all she wanted, such a small little piece of this world, and she died without being able to take a step forward and fulfill her dreams. “The Silent Sister” is available at amazon. com and barnesandnoble.com
A Trump judges JUMP, Rambam wins contest By Sergey Kadinsky The setting was a Manhattan law firm boardroom, everyone wore their best suits, and a Trump helped decide the outcome. But the six Rambam Mesivta students were not seeking to become apprentices, they were judged for their leadership. Now in its fifth year, JUMP- the Jewish Unity Mentoring Program, led by Rabbi Aryeh Lightstone, seeks to encourage students in Jewish high schools to cultivate their leadership skills through community building activities. Past examples include trips to hurricane-damaged New Orleans; and Berlin, Germany, where there is a growing but largely unaffiliated Jewish community. “NCSY is moving towards a stronger leadership model for day school teens and this program is the culmination of that effort,” NCSY International Director Rabbi Steven Burg said. This year, some 120 students from 10 schools participated, including HANC and Rambam. The Rambam team comprised of students Azariah Hacohen, Didi Levy, Evan Linder, Jared Ehrenreich, Moshe Fink, and
Dani Edelman. “This year, the Rambam students went above and beyond the call of duty to organize a chessed trip to Israel; create a learning program with OHEL participants; and fundraise for Israeli soldiers in need of winter gear and equipment,” OU Executive Director Rabbi Steven Weil said. “Short of making aliyah and serving in the IDF, there is not much more they could have done for Israel.” An example of pro-Israel advocacy was the HANC team’s web site, advocate4israel. org, which serves as a one-stop shop for supports of Israel. “Through this website future Israel advocates can learn about Israel, sign petitions in support of Israel, and send letters to their senators, in addition to many more ways to advocate for Israel,” said Max Kahn, a ninth grader who serves as the website’s director. This specific challenge brought my love for Israel to new levels. Even though Jump may be over, our website continues to live on.” The winners were given a tour of Rockefeller Center and a dinner hosted by philanthropist Philip Rosen, who judged the competition alongside Rabbi Weil and prominent
l-r Rabbi Aryeh Lighstone, Ivanka Trump, Philip Rosen and Rabbi Steven Weil. businesswoman Ivanka Trump. “With the ingenuity and creativity of these students, I have never been more confident in the future of American Jewry and its support of the State of Israel,” Rosen said. Last year Ivanka’s father Donald was the judge, honoring the SKA High School for Girls team for their project “Livelong: A Com-
munity Health Awareness Day.” Ivanka Trump expressed the emphasis on actions that defined the competition. “It’s important to remember that it was the good acts, leadership opportunities, and the skills built throughout the year, that will be the legacy of this year’s JUMP Challenge.”
THE JEWISH STAR April 29, 2011 • 25 Nisan, 5771
Anne Frank’s silent sister, historical fiction
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