By Rabbi Yoni Schwartz
It was bitter cold, and they were all starving. On one of the darkest nights in history, Malka Kleinman and her inmates at the Gross-Rosen concentration camp were surviving on their last reserve of willpower. Yom Kippur was around the corner and they were all planning to do the unthinkable: fast. When the fast began and they were forced to work, the hunger pains, bitter cold, and exhaustion only strengthened exponentially; every second felt like hours, but they kept pushing. Finally, the stars came out and they all felt some relief. However, when they asked the Nazi for their food since they did not get it in the morning, she screamed at them in a rage, “If you can work all day without food, then you don’t need food now!” This meant many of them could possibly not survive the night. Malka then did something unheard of. She stood up to a Nazi. “How can you expect us to work if you don’t give us to eat?” she asked. Furious at the defiant confrontation, the Nazi wanted her to suffer.
On that freezing night, the Nazi forced Malka to run around the camp barefoot on the snow while being followed by a Jeep, knowing that if she stops or falls, she’s likely being shot. Sapped of all energy, Malka barely finished the lap. However, it was not over, as the Nazi wanted another lap. The pain was excruciating, each step drained her more and more - but she kept pushing. After finishing the lap, she was about to collapse. However, it was not over there. The Nazi wanted yet another lap. She stood up, stiffened her slouched neck, and kept pushing because would not give the Nazi the satisfaction of winning, nor would she bow down to the pain. She did seven laps before the Nazi gave up and gave in. Speechless and awe-struck with respect for Malka’s superhuman willpower, she decided to feed her entire bunk. Because of Malka, countless lives were saved. (Writer’s Note: Malka is my grandmother and because of her refusal to give up, I am alive.)
Reprinted from the Parshas Ki Sisa 5784 email of Torah Sweets.
