TStimmler19- Trudy Reflection

Taylor Stimmler

Mrs. Hume

English II

February 8, 2016

Assembly Reflection

Trudy was an inspirational speaker and one of my favorite assemblies I have been to at Poly.  I never knew that there was a holocaust survivor so close to us.  For experiencing the Holocaust at a young age, Trudy recalls a lot from it. I enjoyed learning more about her mother. Her mother was also very courageous. After her father was taken, her mom took care of Trudy and tried her best to survive in a male-dominated world.  Even after the war, her mother continued to sew and work even though some of the people she turned coats for were Nazis.

I find it interesting that she and her husband didn’t share their stories with their children till they grew up. I wonder how it must have felt to the sons, to find out your parents had a whole other life. It must have been traumatic to both her children and Trudy and her husband.  A question I have though of since the talk is; did Trudy, and her husband tell their friends of their experiences? I wonder whom they told it to or if they decided not to speak of it.  Trudy must also have a lot of courage because she continues to tell her story; even though they are tough memories that even caused to her have a period of depression.

A question I wished I ask was how was it to go from learning Germany and fitting into that community to coming to America.  I do not recall if she talked about this, as the talk was Friday. I am wondering was it difficult to become accustomed to this country and learn English rapidly. One of my friends came from India with no English experience, and she said she had a very hard time getting used to the culture.

Something that surprised me about the talk was the audience. The sophomores saw the Red Cross Video. This introduced us to Trudy and her story. She retold much of the stories from the video.   A lot of the kids from my class couldn’t pay attention during the short hour. They played on their phones and constantly talked to their neighbors. I found it insulting to the speaker who came to tell her sacred life story.

I find that Trudy’s artwork is a cool way of coping with her memories. The dolls are also a cool way to cope. She researched the history of the outfits and made them as realistic as she could. Personally, I don’t use art as a coping method, so I find it fascinating when I see other people using it.

    Overall I want to visit the Holocaust Museum and see her work in person. I have enjoyed getting to know Trudy and would love to find our more through seeing her art in person.