Jolah19-Trudie Strobel Reflection

Trudie Strobel Reflection

Trudie Strobel’s story about her lost childhood doll and her experiences in Nazi concentration camps was significant to me because it reminded me of stories my grandparents have told me about their experiences during the Hungarian Revolution in October of 1956.  Trudie vividly remembers losing her much loved doll at the age of four, inspiring her create outfits for dolls later in her life.  However, she and others lost so much much more during that war at the hands of the Nazis.  My grandparents were aspiring scientist in Hungary during 1956 when the revolution occurred.  My grandparents along with 200,000 other Hungarians were able to flee the Soviet invasion.  They left hastily with my two year old uncle and two suitcases filled with clothes and absolutely nothing else.  They left behind the family that had not been killed by the Nazis and then by the Soviets, but they left for a much better life.  Many of my Hungarian relatives were killed by the Soviets, my grandmother’s sister sacrificing herself so my grandmother could escape at the cost of her sister’s life.  Trudie Strobel’s story brought to mind their hardships and what it must be like to flee your homeland to an entirely new life.  Her story also resonated with me because it is a story of a refugee's journey to America.  Today, the American dream is being threatened by man who acts only out of self interest.  The idea that a woman like Trudie being prevented from escaping to this country because of her race or religion crushes my heart.