Monika Shafi

This lecture was the most enjoyable i felt because i could connect to her topic on a more personal level than most other lecture topics. When i was younger, learning about the holocaust was just another boring history lesson to me. Not until i was older was i able to understand that this was not just another even in history that we were forced to learn about because according to my teachers it would give me a better appreciation and understanding of the world i live in today. To me it began to mean more. In highschool while having a conversation with my grandparents who live in Germany i brought up the subject and got myself into more than i asked for. I learned that people from my family were victims of Hitlers rein. I learned of many details (that are unnecessary to this post) that really made me think twice about how i viewed this event, as well as others in history. My point, is that for most an event in history is just another chapter in a book, until you hear a real life story of some ones struggles and their tragic personal experience of the event. Then you feel those peoples emotions and think of what it would have been like to be in their shoes. More on topic, to hear of her struggle as a woman jew poet should really make people realize how far we have come in this world and be thankful for the people like her who struggled and experienced the hardships to help get us where we are today. Kolmar's writings were beautiful and helped tell a storie to me. Ms. Shafi's lecture was intriguing and enjoyable for me. I have a lot of respect for her studies.