November 11th - Veteran's Day and a Book Giveaway

In 1954, President Dwight Eisenhower changed the name of Armistice Day to Veterans Day. For several years in the 1970s, Veterans Day was observed in October by many states but in 1978 it was returned to November 11th. Today, Veterans Day is still observed on November 11th as a national holiday to honor all veterans of the United States Armed Forces. (If November 11th falls on a weekend day, the holiday is observed the following Monday.) Throughout the nation, Americans participate in parades, ceremonies, and observances to pay their respects to our servicemen and women, both past and present.

Through the years, we have come to think of Veteran's Day as a time to honor the men and women who have been involved in the Armed Forces (past and present). But if we think back on the original meaning of 'veteran', wouldn't it also be appropriate to honor people of long experience or skill? We often seem stuck in the present or with our eyes turned toward the future and we neglect the past. We discount the wisdom of those who have gone before us and paved the way for us. We forget to take time to simply reflect and we neglect to take the time to learn. And we all know that 'he is doesn't know history is doomed to repeat it.'

So this Veteran's Day, I am not just going to remember and honor the brave men and women who have been part of the United States Armed Forces. Today, I am going to remember a woman who was born on November 11th, 1926 at approximately 11:00 pm, Anny Jeanne Neuman was born in Luxembourg. Anny was born 8 years after the war to end all wars had officially ended. The day she was born had been set aside to commemorate peace that the world hoped would last forever. For the first 13 years of her life, Anny grew up in a home where she was loved and nurtured by her hard working parents. She visited relatives in France. She was an inquisitve and happy child who was a light in her family's home. But before she reached her 14th birthday, she was fleeing for her life with her family from the invading German army.

Anny and her family were not Jewish. They were Catholic. But in the initial invasion of Luxembourg, everyone was at risk of being shot on sight. They left behind virtually everything they owned to escape death in May of 1940. They entered France riding in the same type of cattle cars that would eventually be used to transport Jewish people and other 'enemies' of Germany to concentration camps. She had first had experience of what it was like to be in crammed in a train where there was standing room only for four days without food or water. When her family arrived in France, the French helped them as best as they were able, but they were under attack as well and supplies were scarce for everyone. They were given a place to live in while they were there. It was little more than a hovel, but they made the best of it.

In September of 1940, Anny and her family were allowed to return home to Luxembourg under German rule. But it was not the Luxembourg they knew and loved. Fear marched the streets. Friends disappeared in the dark hours of the night. There were rules to be followed. Anny was told she could no longer associate with her best friend who was Jewish. Indoctrination took place in the school as the Germans tried in vain to turn the citizens of Luxembourg to their way of thinking Anny even had to go through a name change to make her name more pleasing to the German conquerors. Her father was forced to fly a German flag from his window, to ignore friends, and to follwo the German rules. He did these things in order to protect his family and to ensure their survival. Anni (her new name) walked a careful line. She was deferential when she needed to be, but she also visited her Jewish friends in secret. She carried messages and packages for what one can only assume to be some type of underground network. She watched, she learned and during years of deprivation and loss, she never gave up. She never lost her sense of who she was or what was important.

Eventually, the Americans came. And the hope that had kept the Neuman family alive (along with many others), was renewed. As the Germans were pushed back and countries regained their freedom, the Neumans rejoiced. Anni found love or maybe I should say love found her. Even though life was better now that the fear had been banished from the streets. It was still a struggle. Europe had been ravaged by war and it was going to take a long time for any sort of normalcy to return to this war stricken land. Food was still scarce as were jobs and all supplies.

But Anni had dreams and the darkness of the occupation had not destroyed them, only reshaped them. And while she did not live happily ever after, she did way more than survive.

I don't want to tell you the end of her story because that would be spoiling the book that I have to share with you. I do want to say that this book has taught me and touched me more than any book that I have read for a long time. While reading it, I felt much the way I did when I saw Schindler's List. I was reading about horrible things and because I was reading them through the eyes of Anni, I understood them way more than I ever have by reading history books in school. I saw this family triumph time and time again. I saw them not fall to bitterness as so many did. Instead they continued to struggle, to hope, and to dream. They helped one another and others as they could during some of the darkest days of our world's history.

The book that I read was "The Meeting of Anni Adams: The Butterfly of Luxembourg". I won this book in September but was unable to read it until the last couple of week due to other commitments. Lonnie D. Story wrote the story of Anni Jeanne Neuman Adams. He wove in excerpts of history so we would know what was going on in the world beyond Anni and her family. This story will capture you and carry you along as you cry, fear, hope, and survive alongside the Neuman family.

We all go through periods of difficulties and how we get through them is a measure of our character and our outlook. Sometimes we feel like no one else has ever dealt with as much as we are. They wouldn't be able to survive! How can we be expected to be in a good humor with all that is going on. Let Anni and her family be your guide. Let their courage lift you up and let their survival give you hope. Read of their struggles, then compare them to your own. Share this book with your older children so they can get a good inside look at World War II. So much is glossed over and forgotten in today's history books. Don't let them forget. Let's prevent history from repeating itself.

I wrote to Lonnie and told him how much I enjoyed the story and how I wanted to share it with others. I told him I planned to do a review of the book and that I wondered if he would be kind enough to bless one of my readers with a copy of The Butterfly of Luxembourg

He wrote back and said that in honor of Anni's upcoming 81st birthday, he would share not one, but five copies of this wonderful book with my readers. Each copy will be signed by Lonnie and Anni. I am grateful. I am excited to be able to share this amazing story with you. And I look forward to hearing what you think of it when you are through. Here is a recent picture of Anni sharing a copy of her biography with a reader.

All you have to do is leave a comment below. I will close this contest at 11 pm on November 11th, 2007 in honor of Anni Jeanne Neuman Adams. Lonnie will be mailing the book directly to the winners. He said he can mail to U.S. addresses, France, Luxembourg and Belgium.

UPDATE!!!! Lonnie has emailed me Anni's email address. He said she loves to get email, so if you would like to send her birthday wishes, please feel free to contact her. Remember her birthday is November 11th.

If you can't wait to win a copy, you can click on the link below and buy your own now. Or wait and see if you win. If you don't, the link will still be here!