“Once again St. Nicholas DayHas even come to our hideaway;It won't be quite as fun, I fear,As the happy day we had last year.Then we were hopeful, no reason to doubtThat optimism would win the bout,And by the time this year came round,We'd all be free, and safe and sound.Still, let's not forget it's St. Nicholas Day,Though we've nothing left to give away.We'll have to find something else to do:So everyone please look in their shoe!”

“But it's the same with all my friends, just fun and joking, nothing more. I can never bring myself to talk of anything outside the common round.”

“All day long I hear nothing but what an exasperating child I am, and although I laugh it off and pretend not to mind, I wish I could ask God to give me another personality, one that doesn't antagonize everyone.”

“Who has inflicted this upon us? Who has made us Jews different from all other people? Who has allowed us to suffer so terribly up till now? It is God that has made us as we are, but it will be God, too, who will raise us up again. If we bear all this suffering and if there are still Jews left, when it is over, then Jews, instead of being doomed, will be held up as an example. Who knows, it might even be our religion from which the world and all peoples learn good, and for that reason and that reason alone do we have to suffer now. We can never become just Netherlanders, or just English, or representatives of any country for that matter; we will always remain Jews, but we want to, too.”

“We were caught in a vicious circle of unpleasantness and sorrow. Not a very happy period for either us, but at leasst it's coming to an end.”

“Riches, prestige, everything can be lost. But the happiness in your own heart can only be dimmed; it will always be there, as long as you live, to make you happy again.Whenever you're feeling lonely or sad, try going to the loft on a beautiful day and looking outside. Not at the houses and the rooftops, but at the sky. As long as you can look fearlessly at the sky, you'll know that you're pure within and will find happiness once more.”

“We are shut up here, shut away from the world, in fear and anxiety, especially just lately. Why, then, would we who love each other remain apart? Why should we wait until we've reached suitable age? Why should we bother?”