Jacob carried an axe as he and his friend walked toward a forest
in Nazi-occupied Poland. The task ahead was gruesome, but with
courage and determination, they soldiered onward. When they were
deep in the woods, Jacob raised the axe high with the blunt end
aimed toward his friend's leg just above the ankle. Slamming it
down hard, he broke his friend's leg. Then, the friend
reciprocated. Despite intense pain, both men had to feel
gratified because with broken legs, neither could be forced to
march in Hitler's army. The friend's name has been lost in the
crevices of time, but the memory of his bravery remains. During
the same reign of terror in Poland, Rudolf, Jacob's brother,
spent seven months inside a small chapel. During the day, he hid
under an altar. When the church was closed at night, he was free
to walk about inside. His mother went to the church daily to
pray. Wearing a cape under which she hid food, she fed her son.
He survived. A kind farm woman in Poland fed anyone who came by
and asked for food. O