Four Perfect Pebbles

Content Warning: The section of the guide contains discussions of discrimination, graphic violence, and death.

Hope and resilience are the primary traits that each of the Blumenthals shared, and the main reason why they were able to survive the Holocaust and go on to live meaningful, thriving lives. In her dedication, Marion writes, “out of darkness comes light”; her life and her mission to share her story are a testament to this fact, and to the importance of hope. Unlike many other survivors, Marion was a child during the Holocaust, and the resilience she displayed was often rooted in innocence—her belief in small rituals, like collecting pebbles, allowed her to maintain hope even when surrounded by horror. Marion and her family went through a horrific experience that lasted years, and yet she was able to come out the other side and turn that experience into a reason to affect change. Marion, Albert, Ruth, and Walter each exhibited courage, strength, endurance, hope, and resilience, and each was able to see liberation day.

Marion collected four perfect pebbles at Bergen-Belsen as a symbol of her hope and her belief that by doing so, her family would survive. Marion was just a child and did not remember life before the camps; for her, it was the only life she knew.