I keep this photo in my office. It’s a reminder of what real suffering looks like.
Her name was Czesława Kwoka—a 14-year-old Catholic girl from Poland, deported to Auschwitz with her mother during the Nazi occupation.
Shortly after they arrived, a guard beat her in the face for not understanding orders in German. Then, this photo was taken. She was murdered weeks later.
The camp photographer, a fellow prisoner named Wilhelm Brasse, defied orders and secretly preserved her image.
“Forces beyond your control can take away everything you possess—except one thing: your freedom to choose how you respond”.
—Viktor E. Frankl, Man’s Search for Meaning
I hope people who are struggling right now see this—and remember that even in the darkest moments, we can still choose compassion, dignity, and courage.
May her face never be forgotten.
The Valley Viewpoint 