a life of its own

every year when i begin to teach a unit on the holocaust, i prepare for an adventure.  because each time the lessons take on a life of their own, setting off a chain of events that couldn't be mere coincidence.  i swear it's alive.  consider that...in september i put a random book on hold at the library...i forget about the book until a notification comes in november...i check out some holocaust dvds and get a receipt...but i have to go to the back shelf and get in line again to claim the hold item...(stay with me here) because of this i get a new reciept which says "join us for holocaust survivors les and eva aigner this friday night 7-8:30 pm in the community room"...i watch one of the dvds about WWII...i cry while describing the basic plot line to my students...by chance a co-worker has just finished reading the same book...while looking in my files i come across an article i clipped last year from the Oregonian about...les and eva aigner. i've only "met" survivors via YouTube or newspaper, never in person.  and, while i know it may not be the most hip way to spend a friday night, it's always in vogue with me to learn something new.  and what better way to learn history than from real people and the stories that only they can tell!