When Gerta, named for her grandmother Gertrude, went to bed Saturday, August 12, she eagerly anticipated the return of her father and middle brother Dominic. Her father and brother had traveled to West Germany a few days before in hopes of finding work and a new life for Gerta and her family. Disturbed by noises in the night, Gerta slept poorly, but nothing could have prepared her for what she would discover upon waking Sunday morning. While Gerta and her neighbors slept, the government of East Berlin had built a wall around them. It was for their own protection, they were told. Freedom, their government said, was overrated.
Gerta believed otherwise. At the age of 12, Gerta would test the limits of her belief and risk everything to lead her family to freedom.
In A Night Divided, we learn a lot about who Gerta is and the person the wall forces her to become. She is angry, courageous, resourceful, German, loyal, hard-working, determined. This is one list.
Before we meet next week, I would like to know who you are. Your assignment, if you choose to accept it: Write down your name. Then, compile a list of adjectives that best describes who you are. Finally, write a paragraph that describes how what makes you unique.
Please send me your name, list of adjectives and paragraph in a Word document as an e-mail attachment. I will post your work here on our blog.
I look forward to meeting you all next Thursday.
