East-West Welcomes Rosa Strygler !

Dear Katurah,

i enjoyed reading your post on Rosa's visit, because i thought you revealed your impression on her. I  understand that not many people may have been looking forward to her visit, so i unerstand where you may feel a bad impression.

One sentence that you wrote that stood out for me is " she was nagging at us about her past." i think  this is stupid, as her attendance to the visit wasn't mandatory. She decided to come and meet us, touched that people want to know about her.

another sentence that i enjoyed was " rosa turned out to be more then what i expected." because i was wondering what you could've been expecting.

Your post reminds me of something that happened to me, recently i was appointed to a meeting in which i wasn't expecting and disliked attending. I wasnt to happy about the whole thing and by the time the meeting happened i was in a horrible mood. I think that maybe because you were missing out on something you may have wanted to do, you felt as though the meeting was a drag.

thanks for your writing. i look forward to seeing what you write next, because i enjoy reading your thoughts on a event. Your impressions are very odd, and at least abit more interesting

 Dear KHarris, 

   I enjoyed reading your post, East-West Welcomes Rosa Strylger !. You were honest about what you felt and didn't just say things to get your work done. I have some things to say to what you wrote, and I feel that this post is a good source for people's reactions and remembrance of the event. There aren't that many people in our class who take time actually putting up meaningful posts. Like me.

   One sentence I found interesting was, "Its very important that we all try and make something more of this world. We all need to help stop the killing of innocent people." I agree with you, but sadly, as long as their are people, there will be killing. As long as there is the desire for power, people will die. I feel that it is an almost impossible task, to prevent people from harming each other. There is no way this can happen in the real world, well in my opinion. I do feel that there should be attempts, regardless of how fruitful they may end up being.

   Another sentence that caught my eye was, " "Don't you think that you and your husband fed into your son Steve's addiction by giving him money everytime he asked for it, knowing just what he was goin to do with the money?" At first I was skeptical about asking her the question because I thought I would upset her, because In a way I was basically asking her if she helped her son die. But Rosa responded in the most sweetest and honest way. She said: "Yes, we did, but I really loved him." I remember when you asked, and when she replied. I felt that she was irresponsible, even though she loved her son, she should have given him regulation. My mother would get upset at me for even asking to borrow money, if she knew about my uses for it, she would perhaps try to discipline me as much as she can. 

   I enjoyed reading your post, I thought it was interesting and wasn't off putting. Thank you for posting this, I look forward to seeing more of what you write.

Dear KHarris,

I really enjoyed your post "Rosas visit" because i had the same thought process as you going into to the Rosa interview. I felt i truelly cared and want to make sure thati wasattentive for such an historic figure but then again didnt know how to approach the interview. I also didnt want to say the wrong thing so i didnt want to comment but i found myself speaking to her.

One sentence you wrote that stands out for me is " I dont think anyone can imagine just what Rosa is still going through or really feels unless they have been a victim of the Holocaust." I think this is very cool because you understand the tramatic events that she had to endure and can sympathize on a level not many can.. You dont selfishly think of how she feels you simply admit to the fact her life is nothing short of a miracle.

Another sentence that i could sympathize with was "  I really enjoyed meeting her and hearing her tell her story on her own rather than relying on just her book." This stood out for me becasue i also believe in first person source. Primary sources are important.

I do strongly agree with you that books are secondary sources.One reason i say this is beacuse in person in a one on one converstation is much more personaly and substanctial.Another reason i agree with you is because i think she had more to say then she wrote in her book.

Thanks for your writing. I look forward to seeing what you write next, because you have great insight. You also show great understanding of the human being. I love forward to seeing what other things have affect on you and how they make you feel.

                                                                                                                                                                 ...... Love BRAvo

Dear Keturah,

I really liked your post as it showed how many people felt
about the Rosa Strygler coming to East West. I don’t feel many people including
myself were looking forward to reading the book or listening to her speak when
she came to the school. I’ve heard stories from other Holocaust survivors in
the past and it always sounds pretty much the same. There’s always talk of the
gas chambers and how people were brutally beaten.

However, the book Rosa as well as the visit from Rosa
Strygler herself showed a different side to the devastation. Not only was the
book about her happy childhood and the events leading up to her family dying,
she goes in detail about how the event never left her. There was a part early
on in the book where she sees a chimney when going to visit her son at college
and how that triggered a flashback to her days through the Holocaust.

I really liked when you said “I grew to understand why she
cared for her son as much as she did. She lost her family during the Holocaust
and besides her husband, she needed someone to love, just like how her parents
loved her.”

This relates to so many people who came to see Rosa. I think
a lot of us didn’t want to be bother with something we had heard so many times
before.

I also liked the question you asked Rosa. “Don't you think
that you and your husband fed into your son Steve's addiction by giving him
money everytime he asked for it, knowing just what he was going to do with the
money?”

I could tell that you were a little bit scared to ask and I
felt it was a very person question only a brave soul could ask. I also in a way
felt she was just feeding into her son’s addiction. She could have chosen to stop
giving him money and let him realize that the drugs weren’t the best option,
but as a mother, she couldn’t allow herself to abandon her son.

Like you said in your opening, "I wasnt really looking forward to reading the book Rosa or seeing her" I could relate to you. It's like, ok, there's some lady who wrote a book and I have to read it for what? I started reading and was like, "this chick is crazy why is it that she'd suspect all this and then not even try to get some kind of help." I predicted that things would end terrible for her and I predicted correct. Steve, her son, ends up dying and now look, she regrets it. When she came to the school to tell her many stories, she said that she didn't regret anything about Steve because he lived his life how he wanted to and was (very twisted) but happy with himself. She must be outta her mind but what can you do...