“I have never had a bad day.”
Classrooms Without Borders, Wheeling and the Ohio County Public Library hosted a program featuring Aron Bielski and his wife Henryka on Thursday, April 27, 2017. Aron is the last surviving Bielski brother. He, and three of his brothers - Tuvia, Asael, and Zus - living in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe escaped to the Belarussian forest where they joined Russian resistance fighters and created a safe village for themselves and about 1,200 Jewish non-combatants whom they helped to escape. Their story is captured in the 2008 movie Defiance which is available on You-Tube, Amazon and Netflix.
Aron was the youngest of 10 children. In 1941, at the age of 11, he witnessed his mother, father, and two of his siblings dragged from their house, forced into a wagon and taken to a mass grave where they and 4,000 other Jews were executed. Aron was hiding behind a tree. Thereafter he and three of his brothers fled to the forest and organized a partisan group whose primary goal was to rescue Jews and offer them shelter.
Eventually, after the war, he and his brothers fought in Israel’s War of independence, thereafter living in many places before coming to the United States, settling in Brooklyn with his wife and brothers and operating a taxi business.
His book, Caught Between Hitler and Stalin chronicles his story.
Aron is now 91, vibrant and still passionate about life.
The format for the program was allowing the members of the large audience to ask questions to which he, his wife and the moderator from Classrooms Without Borders would respond. It seemed as if audience members, many of whom were young people, were eager to hear how he managed to deal with what to them was a terrible and frightening experience. True, lack of food, water, and the constant danger of being captured was the reality in which they lived. Yet, when asked how he managed to keep a positive attitude, he kept responding that “I have never had a bad day.” Both his wife and the moderator confirmed that, in fact, while obviously knowing that one must never forget the cruelness with which humans can treat each other, Aron is always positive and ready to embrace the day while doing what is possible, even at 91, to educate others.
One might think of the story of he and his brothers as one of courage, enormous strength, and, possibly amazing faith in the God of his Jewish heritage. Yet, Aron does not concern himself with God, does not worry whether one is Christian, Jewish or whatever. While not denying the cruelness, he celebrates the gift of a sense of purpose, the opportunity to help others (even today he and his wife raise money to feed hungry children in this and other countries), and the knowledge that if today is difficult tomorrow will be better. With an engaging sense of humor, he said more than once, “If today my wife hollers tomorrow she will be in a better humor.” Then he shared the twinkling smile.
Even without having to witness the execution of family members, daily risking one’s life in a war zone, learning to fight at age 11, knowing hunger and uncertainty many, if not most of us, have bad days or even bad weeks, months and years. We find it difficult to accept that one cannot go through such tragic times and never have a bad day. One may be tempted to think that one is hearing a Pollyanna version of the truth which denies the obvious.
I am reminded of other individuals I have been privileged to know such as Rudy who was crowded into a train on the way to a camp during WII. He would say, “I was sick with worry about my precious daughter, my adored wife, about what would happen in the camp and to me. I then noticed that the train was passing through a section of German mountains I had always wanted to see and I said to myself, Rudy, you cannot do anything about your daughter or your wife. You cannot control what happens when you get to the camp. The only thing which you can control is whether or not you enjoy the beauty of these mountains. So, I enjoyed the mountains.” Rudy lived his life in the same way that Aron continues to live his.
When listening to the On Being podcast conversation with Krista Tippett, Adam Grant and Sheryl Sandberg entitled “Resilience After Unimaginable Loss” I hear Dr. Grant inviting Sheryl to think about what could be worse than the sudden death of her beloved 47-year-old husband leaving her and the 7 and 10-year-old children to go on without him. At first it seems like a cruel question, but then she hears him asking what if her husband had suffered the heart attack while driving with the two children in the car? What if all three of them had died? Yes, the death of her husband was very sad but there was also a blessing contained in the fact that the children are still here.
Often in the midst of a sad or even tragic loss, one experiences the generous kindness of friends or family members. One gets to experience the best of who we can be as humans. While the loss is real so is the blessing.
Aron mentioned sadness during the course of the evening. He did not deny that he had lived through events which were extremely sad and, yet, once again, he did not miss the joy of embracing a sense of purpose, the intimacy and joy of working with three of others for a good cause. He certainly had not yet heard the serenity prayers, but he had embraced it even as Reinhold Niebuhr did long before Reinhold published it in 1951 (first used in a sermon in 1934).
Again, I am reminded that it is not events per se that create unbearable days. It is isolation and the loneliness of blocking ourselves off from the warmth of human connection even in the midst of the worst of times.
Aron Bielski reminded me and all the other members of the audience that one need not ever have a bad day – that it is never either or. This reminder was a lovely and valuable gift.
Written April 28, 2017
“I have never had a bad day.”
Classrooms Without Borders, Wheeling and the Ohio County Public Library hosted a program featuring Aron Bielski and his wife Henryka on Thursday, April 27, 2017. Aron is the last surviving Bielski brother. He, and three of his brothers - Tuvia, Asael, and Zus - living in Nazi-occupied Eastern Europe escaped to the Belarussian forest where they joined Russian resistance fighters and created a safe village for themselves and about 1,200 Jewish non-combatants whom they helped to escape. Their story is captured in the 2008 movie Defiance which is available on You-Tube, Amazon and Netflix.
Aron was the youngest of 10 children. In 1941, at the age of 11, he witnessed his mother, father, and two of his siblings dragged from their house, forced into a wagon and taken to a mass grave where they and 4,000 other Jews were executed. Aron was hiding behind a tree. Thereafter he and three of his brothers fled to the forest and organized a partisan group whose primary goal was to rescue Jews and offer them shelter.
Eventually, after the war, he and his brothers fought in Israel’s War of independence, thereafter living in many places before coming to the United States, settling in Brooklyn with his wife and brothers and operating a taxi business.
His book, Caught Between Hitler and Stalin chronicles his story.
Aron is now 91, vibrant and still passionate about life.
The format for the program was allowing the members of the large audience to ask questions to which he, his wife and the moderator from Classrooms Without Borders would respond. It seemed as if audience members, many of whom were young people, were eager to hear how he managed to deal with what to them was a terrible and frightening experience. True, lack of food, water, and the constant danger of being captured was the reality in which they lived. Yet, when asked how he managed to keep a positive attitude, he kept responding that “I have never had a bad day.” Both his wife and the moderator confirmed that, in fact, while obviously knowing that one must never forget the cruelness with which humans can treat each other, Aron is always positive and ready to embrace the day while doing what is possible, even at 91, to educate others.
One might think of the story of he and his brothers as one of courage, enormous strength, and, possibly amazing faith in the God of his Jewish heritage. Yet, Aron does not concern himself with God, does not worry whether one is Christian, Jewish or whatever. While not denying the cruelness, he celebrates the gift of a sense of purpose, the opportunity to help others (even today he and his wife raise money to feed hungry children in this and other countries), and the knowledge that if today is difficult tomorrow will be better. With an engaging sense of humor, he said more than once, “If today my wife hollers tomorrow she will be in a better humor.” Then he shared the twinkling smile.
Even without having to witness the execution of family members, daily risking one’s life in a war zone, learning to fight at age 11, knowing hunger and uncertainty many, if not most of us, have bad days or even bad weeks, months and years. We find it difficult to accept that one cannot go through such tragic times and never have a bad day. One may be tempted to think that one is hearing a Pollyanna version of the truth which denies the obvious.
I am reminded of other individuals I have been privileged to know such as Rudy who was crowded into a train on the way to a camp during WII. He would say, “I was sick with worry about my precious daughter, my adored wife, about what would happen in the camp and to me. I then noticed that the train was passing through a section of German mountains I had always wanted to see and I said to myself, Rudy, you cannot do anything about your daughter or your wife. You cannot control what happens when you get to the camp. The only thing which you can control is whether or not you enjoy the beauty of these mountains. So, I enjoyed the mountains.” Rudy lived his life in the same way that Aron continues to live his.
When listening to the On Being podcast conversation with Krista Tippett, Adam Grant and Sheryl Sandberg entitled “Resilience After Unimaginable Loss” I hear Dr. Grant inviting Sheryl to think about what could be worse than the sudden death of her beloved 47-year-old husband leaving her and the 7 and 10-year-old children to go on without him. At first it seems like a cruel question, but then she hears him asking what if her husband had suffered the heart attack while driving with the two children in the car? What if all three of them had died? Yes, the death of her husband was very sad but there was also a blessing contained in the fact that the children are still here.
Often in the midst of a sad or even tragic loss, one experiences the generous kindness of friends or family members. One gets to experience the best of who we can be as humans. While the loss is real so is the blessing.
Aron mentioned sadness during the course of the evening. He did not deny that he had lived through events which were extremely sad and, yet, once again, he did not miss the joy of embracing a sense of purpose, the intimacy and joy of working with three of others for a good cause. He certainly had not yet heard the serenity prayers, but he had embraced it even as Reinhold Niebuhr did long before Reinhold published it in 1951 (first used in a sermon in 1934).
Again, I am reminded that it is not events per se that create unbearable days. It is isolation and the loneliness of blocking ourselves off from the warmth of human connection even in the midst of the worst of times.
Aron Bielski reminded me and all the other members of the audience that one need not ever have a bad day – that it is never either or. This reminder was a lovely and valuable gift.
Written April 28, 2017
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