The passage below was written on 12/11/22 after I learned that my Aunt Inga had passed away and shared with family. Aunt Inga was taken by the Nazis along with my mother to work as slave laborers. I learned much from her about their lives during the war. Also, I found that I have many more questions that will never be answered.
As I reflect on the passing of a cherished relative, I contemplate what was most significant to me. My ninety-eight-year-old Aunt Inga died on December 11, 2022. Her story was intertwined with my mom's as a slave laborer described in my book "In the Time of Madmen". Within this vast universe in which life ebbs and flows in its chaotic black sea, it struck me that its tide seems to crystalize on the date 12/11 and the implications that it has for my family. The death of my father and my son's anoxic brain injury due to a senseless mechanical defect both occurred on 12/11. After a twelve-and-a-half-year struggle with his disability, my son perished on the 11th day of the month June because of covid-19. These are the memories that haunt me as the days grow shorter and winter's cold breath beckons.
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