A Life Examined

"I, only 10, was standing next to my hero, my friend, the police officer, the commander in the underground-the person wanted dead or alive.

We were standing inside by the front room window, watching the Germans making their way across the fields, toward our little farm.

I didn't want him to be there. I wanted him to hide where he could never be found. But I was also sure the hiding place might not be good enough.

I looked at my friend. And then I saw the gun halfway out of his pocket, his hand on it.

And I wondered: to shoot himself, or the enemy?

Meanwhile the Germans were closing in."