FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 5, 1943
Dearest Kitty,
Though its been ages since Ive written to you about the squabbles, theres still no ge. In the begin ning Mr. Dussel took our soon-fotten clashes very seriously, but now hes growo them and no lories to mediate.
Margot aer arely what youd call "young"; theyre both so quiet and b. o them, I stick out like a sore thumb, and Im always being told, "Margot aer dont act that way. Why dont you follow your sisters example!" I hate that.
I fess that I have absolutely no desire to be like Margot. Shes too weak-willed and passive to suit me; she lets herself be swayed by others and always backs down under pressure. I want to have more spunk! But I keep ideas like these to myself.
Theyd only laugh at me if I offered this in my defense.
During meals the air is filled with tension. Fortunately, the outbursts are sometimes held in check by the "soup eaters," the people from the office who e up to have a cup of soup for lunch.
This afternoon Mr. van Daan again brought up the fact that Margot eats so little. "I suppose you do it to keep yure," he added in a mog tone.
Mother, who always es tots defense, said in a loud voice, "I t stand that stupid chatter of yours a minute longer.」
Mrs. van D. turned red as a beet. Mr. van D. stared straight ahead and said nothing.
Still, we often have a good laugh. Not long ago Mrs. van D. was eaining us with some bit of nonsense or another. She was talking about the past, about how well she got along with her father and what a flirt she was. "And you know," she tinued, "my father told me that if a gentleman ever got fresh, I was to say, Remem ber, sir, that Im a lady, and hed know what I meant." We split our sides laughing, as if shed told us a good joke.
Eveer, though hes usually quiet, occasionally gives rise to hilarity. He has the misfortune of ad fn words without knowing what they mean. Oernoon we couldnt use the toilet because there were visitors in the office. Uo wait, he went to the bathroom but didnt flush the toilet. To warn us of the unpleasant odor, he tacked a sign to the bathroom door: "RSVP -- gas!" Of course, he meant "Danger -- gas!" but he thought "RSVP" looked more elegant. He didnt have the fai idea that it meant "please reply.」
Yours, Anne
SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 27, 1943
Dearest Kitty,
Pim is expeg the invasion any day now. Churchill has had pneumonia, but is gradually gettier. Gandhi, the champion of Indian freedom, is on one of his umpteenth hurikes.
Mrs. van D. claims shes fatalistic. But whos the most afraid when the guns go off?
her tharonella van Daan.
Jan brought along the episcopal letter that the bishops addressed to their parishioners.
It was beautiful and inspiring. "People of the herlands, stand up and take a.
Each of us must choose our own ons to fight for the freedom of our try, our people and our reli gion! Give your help and support. Aow!" This is what theyre preag from the pulpit. Will it do any good? Its defioo late to help our fellow Jews.
Guess whats happeo us now? The owner of the building sold it without inf Mr. Kugler and Mr. Kleiman. One m the new landlord arrived with an architect to look the place over. Thank goodness Mr. Kleiman was in the office. He showed the gentlemen all there was to see, with the exception of the Secret Annex. He claimed hed left the key at home and the new owner asked no further questions