***Side note- if you don't feel like it's a milestone and are laughing at the use of the term, I'm sorry you don't get the joy the written word brings and you REALLY will benefit from reading this book!!!***
Ariel was so lucky to have landed where he did, in the classroom of Elie Wiesel, and to spend many years learning from and sharing with the man. And this book really does drive home that point, Elie wasn't a celebrity, he was a curious and sensitive man who survived something horrific and rather than crumble or become jaded and disconnected, he "preached," for lack of a better word, the value in always being willing, always seeking out, always letting yourself learn, right until your last day. And he placed such high value in the role of the witness, even if it is as the witness to the witness. It is how we never let history devour, change, and erase the events we need to learn from and to protect ourselves and each other from ever having to repeat.
What becomes clear from the beginning is how much Elie respected and honored each and every student who sat before him even as he pushed and challenged them. One of the things Ariel quotes Elie as saying most often is "I need more" after a student has responded to their in class discussions.
As a man who witnessed what was inarguably one of if not the worst human tragedies in the history of humanity he stayed so gentle and open to the world. He traveled and spoke and used what open doors he came across to bear witness to each later tragedy and atrocity in hopes of awakening people and spurring action.
He was a witness both to his own time and to the sufferings and hurt of others. And he SPOKE!!
(Finished December 12, 2018)
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