Well I suppose this is my (or should I say "our" since Carly and I share this blog) first blog entry. This is kind of exciting! I suppose it is only appropriate for me to introduce myself.
My name is Amanda Zeitler. I am a sophomore at Loyola Marymount University in Los Angeles. I'm an English major with a Theatre minor and the reason I am creating this blog (the first in my whole life - which is odd considering our youth's obsession with the digital luxuries of the age) for a class project. I am currently taking a literature class entitled "The Holocaust in Poland" and we are partnering with another class at California State University Northridge. The goal of this project is for me (and my partner, Carly) to interview a Holocaust survivor named Sarah Lumer and to record and reflect on our experiences with her here on this blog.
The interview was supposed to take place this past Sunday, but due to scheduling conflicts, we've put it off until this coming Sunday (March 21). And I have never been so nervous. I'm honestly not sure what to expect from this experience. After all the reading and video-watching and examining we have done in this class, I can definitely say I have a MUCH deeper understanding of the horrors and traumas that survivors went through. That said, I have no idea how Mrs. Lumer or I will react to this interview. Or if it will even be successful. Dr. Levitsky warned us that our survivors may not want to talk about their experience. What if this happens? What am I going to have to work with on this project? We were also warned that survivors may get very emotional (and understandably so). What do I do if this happens? How do I handle it? Obviously my goal is to be as compassionate and understanding as possible and to do my best to really listen. But despite these goals, what if something goes horribly wrong?
Perhaps my fears are irrational or unnecessary. Regardless, they are there and I do not think I will be able to get rid of them. At least not until Sunday when I finally have to swallow them and take whatever's thrown at me. Wish me luck!
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Well tomorrow is the day! Amanda and I have finally have a set time to meet Sara. This is so exciting and at the same time I am scared shitless. I hope it all goes well and we can make her as comfortable as possible. Amanda's questions are great! Man she's on it! She really put a lot of thought into wanting to get to know her before and after the war. I'm relieved that she doesn't mind being the one to ask them. I'm so nervous but have to keep my composure considering Sara had never been interviewed by students before so she might be a little nervous. This is an amazing opportunity I'm jst distracted by how reluctant I feel to really delve into this.
ReplyDeleteOH I should introduce myself as well...My name is Carly, I'm a graduating senior at Cal State Northridge. I'm taking this class for my senior seminar. I didn't really know what to expect exactly coming into this class. It isn't the easiest subject matter to deal with emotionally, nevertheless it is our history and I thought it was interesting they made a class study on it. My class is linked to LMU and I look forward to getting to the third dimesion soon and being able to finally see them face to face.
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