Celebration

A couple of posts ago I worked out my end of year meme. One question was "Whose behaviour merited celebration?" I would like to add a person here who came to my attention last year for the first time and who became a personal hero of mine. Beate Klarsfeld*  not only raised a family in post-war Europe, she is also an active Nazi Hunter who was responsible  for bringing war criminals such as Klaus Barbie to trial. She spent time in various jails for this and had her car bombed but never gave up chasing the people who had been responsible for the death of so many. She also publicly slapped West German Chancellor Kurt Georg Kiesinger and denounced him for his role in promoting Nazi propaganda. Again, she was sentenced to jail time for this but given probation.

I really admire this woman and her tenacity and consider her to be the most beautiful woman of the 20th Century.

Yes, her husband Serge was also actively involved and deserves as much celebration as she does, but I am a woman celebrating a woman. I find it hard to raise a family and write a novel and yet, here is this woman who raised a family and fought monsters.

And that's inspiring.