My particicapent was born in Birkenfeld, Germany in 1961 on May 17th. Birkenfeld is a small farming town in southwest Germany. In Germany, lower-income children went to a Volkschule, while wealthier children would go to Gymnasium, instead of the elementary and middle school system we have in the U.S. From that point forward, you either recieved very good grades and went on to university, or you learned a trade and joined the workforce. Being from a poor, rural town, very few of my mom 's peers went to school. Most of them went on to become workers at age 16, and would stay at that job for the rest of their life. She had much grander expectations for her life, and studied very hard and went on to university. Typically, her daily homework would
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When she was growing up, there was very little importance put on emotional well-being and your personal happiness. There was also very little support for mental illness, and people often had to swallow their problems and put on a straight face. It was generally accepted that life was hard and often sad but you had to keep living to support others. Most of her family members suffer from depression, and some have commited suicide. Very emotionally unhealthy behaviors were accepted as normal, such as violence and neglect, and this has had a huge negative impact on all aspects of life. Sadly, this cycles down to newer generations and is very unlikely to be changed without third-party …show more content…
Tanks and military jets were not uncommon, and she felt as thought she was "living in a continous warzone." Most people were aware of the many concentration camps that neighbored them, but unable to actually do anything, they just lamented with friends over how terrible it was. Hitler was initially beloved because he represented a self-made man, and offered hope to a depressed Germany. However, not everybody bought it. Her grandfather always refused to say "Heil Hitler." This was actually dangerous, and his life and family was threatened. Thankfully, his brother was a respected member of the S.S., and although he commited horrible acts himself, he (Ironically) was able to protect his sibling and allow her grandfather freedom to openly express his hatred towards Hitler - something most people could very easily be ruined or even killed for. She cheered alongside everybody else when the Berlin wall was torn
When she was growing up, there was very little importance put on emotional well-being and your personal happiness. There was also very little support for mental illness, and people often had to swallow their problems and put on a straight face. It was generally accepted that life was hard and often sad but you had to keep living to support others. Most of her family members suffer from depression, and some have commited suicide. Very emotionally unhealthy behaviors were accepted as normal, such as violence and neglect, and this has had a huge negative impact on all aspects of life. Sadly, this cycles down to newer generations and is very unlikely to be changed without third-party …show more content…
Tanks and military jets were not uncommon, and she felt as thought she was "living in a continous warzone." Most people were aware of the many concentration camps that neighbored them, but unable to actually do anything, they just lamented with friends over how terrible it was. Hitler was initially beloved because he represented a self-made man, and offered hope to a depressed Germany. However, not everybody bought it. Her grandfather always refused to say "Heil Hitler." This was actually dangerous, and his life and family was threatened. Thankfully, his brother was a respected member of the S.S., and although he commited horrible acts himself, he (Ironically) was able to protect his sibling and allow her grandfather freedom to openly express his hatred towards Hitler - something most people could very easily be ruined or even killed for. She cheered alongside everybody else when the Berlin wall was torn