THE DIARY OF A YOUNG GIRL : THE DEFINITIVE EDITION ... - Fidele

P.S. We'd be delighted if you could hunt up a good detective for us. Obviously,
there's one condotion: he must be relied upon not to mform on people in hiding.
THURSDAY, MARCH 2, 1944
Dearest Kitty,
Margot and I were in the attic together today. I can't enjoy being there with her
the way I imagine it'd be with Peter (or someone else). I know she feels the same
about most things as I do!
While doing the dishes, Bep began talking to Mother and Mrs. van Daan about how
discouraged she gets. What help did those two offer her? Our tactless mother,
especially, only made things go from bad to worse. Do you know what her advice
was? That she should think about all the other people in the world who are
suffering! How can thinking about the misery of others help if you're miserable
yourself? I said as much. Their response, of course, was that I should stay out of
conversations of this sort.
The grown-ups are such idiots! As if Peter, Margot, Bep and I didn't all have the
same feelings. The only thing that helps is a mother's love, or that of a very,
very close friend. But these two mothers don't understand the first thing about
us! Perhaps Mrs. van Daan does, a bit more than Mother. Oh, I wish I could have
said something to poor Bep, something that I know from my own experience would
have helped. But Father came between us, pushing me roughly aside. They're all so
stupid!
I also talked to Margot about Father and Mother, about how nice it could be here
if they weren't so aggravating. We'd be able to organize evenings in which
everyone could take turns discussing a given subject. But we've already been
through all that. It's impossible for me to talk here! Mr. van Daan goes on the
offensive, Mother i gets sarcastic and can't say anythina in a normal voice,
Father doesn't feel like taking part, nor does Mr. Dussel, and Mrs. van D. is
attacked so often that she just sits there with a red face, hardly able to put up
a fight anymore. And what about us? We aren't allowed to have an opinion! My, my,
aren't they progressive! Not have an opinion! People can tell you to shut up, but
they can't keep you from having an opinion. You can't forbid someone to have an
opinion, no matter how young they are! The only thing that would help Bep, Margot,
Peter and me would be great love and devotion, which we don't get here. And no
one, especially not the idiotic sages around here, is capable of understanding us,
since we're more sensitive and much more advanced in our thinking than any of them
ever suspect!
Love, what is love? I don't think you can really put it into words. Love is
understanding someone, caring for him, sharing his joys and sorrows. This
eventually includes physical love. You've shared something, given something away
and received something in return, whether or not you're married, whether or not
you have a baby. Losing your virtue doesn't matter, as long as you know that for
as long as you live you'll have someone at your side who understands you, and who
doesn't have to be shared with anyone else!
Yours, Anne M. Frank
At the moment, Mother's grouching at me again; she's clearly jealous because I
talk to Mrs. van Daan more than to her. What do I care!
I managed to get hold of Peter this afternoon, and we talked for at least forty-