Anne Frank: How to Begin

In Writing to Change the World, Mary Pipher tells of visiting the Holocaust museum in Washington, D.C., to see a special exhibit on Anne Frank. The exhibit included the cover of and pages from her diary as well as film clips of a neighbor who brought food and a rare clip of Anne waving from a balcony in earlier, better times. At the end of the exhibit, Pipher reports, visitors hear a girl reading from an essay, “Give,” Anne had written after watching beggars on the street below.

She wonders if people who live in cozy houses have any idea of the life of beggars. She offers hope: “How wonderful it is that no one has to wait, but can start right now to gradually change the world.” She suggests action: “Give whatever you have to give, you can always give something, even if it’s a simple act of kindness.” And she ends with: “The world has plenty of room, riches, money and beauty. God has created enough for each and every one of us. Let us begin by dividing it more fairly.”