Anne Frank Museum

As a travel soccer player, having the opportunity to play soccer in Holland with People to People World Leadership Forum was going to be a great life experience I would never forget.  The People to People travel sites weren’t going to be the highlight of my trip.  Having lived and traveled in Europe made me think, “How many times can I go to Amsterdam and visit the Anne Frank house?”  This visit would make my sixth trip to the Anne Frank house.  Once I met my group and realized I was the only one who had been to Amsterdam before, I became excited about going.  The others started asking me questions about the sites.  I began to feel like a tour guide and everyone was getting excited about what I was saying.  I was explaining bits and pieces about the house.  I soon realized I was more excited about going back to the Anne Frank house than I realized.

            Since my last visit to the Anne Frank house I have learned more about Anne Frank and her family.  This visit soon became an extremely enlightening experience.  I was able to see the Anne Frank house from a different perspective.  When I approached the infamous bookcase I began to realize how frightened the Frank family must have been.  They were in hiding for almost two years.  Dedicated friends and workers hid them in the factory.  Their friends made the choice to stand up and take action when so many would rather have turned them in.  That act was a real sign of courage and humanity.  This kind of support is still vitally important in today’s society.  Anne was thirteen when she went into hiding.  To stay inside in a small space must have been suffocating.  They had to be exceptionally quiet; they couldn’t even flush a toilet when people were in the factory.  Anne must have been terrified the entire time, thinking they would be found and shot to death.

Anne Frank emphasized the importance of mutual respect between people with different backgrounds.  Going to her house and reading her diary makes me Thank God for The United States of America and the ability to live life freely.  The Anne Frank House directly relates to a concern for preserving freedom and maintaining human rights in a democratic society.  I feel if more Americans reflected on what Anne Frank stood for and related it to the situation we face daily in Iraq, then more people like me would have a better understanding of the importance to fight for freedom.