Due to a remarkable series of events, David Rosenberg of Lodz, Poland survived WWII. Miraculously, the sweetheart of his youth had also survived.
In early 1947 they married in Gothenburg and found their way to the booming industrial town of Sodertalje, south of Stockholm. With little money, but high hopes and steady jobs, they set out to build a good life in a foreign land.
A book rich in contrasts
A Short Stop on The Road from Auschwitz is about how such an improbable situation came to be and how it shaped the future of this young, hopeful and industrious couple. It is written by David’s son, a well-known Swedish journalist and author, Goran Rosenberg.
It takes the reader on a journey through hopelessly dark and brutal times, as well as revisiting the fun and adventurous days of a carefree childhood with loving parents.
Contrasting events are skillfully interwoven as the author sifts through his own memories, his parents’ memories and historical documentation from post-war Sweden and German war crimes committed in Poland – especially toward the end of the war.
History unfolds through personal correspondence and historical documents
Letters written from his father to his mother during these years provides a way for the son to know where and when his father had been in different death camps.
But David wrote little of the incredible brutality he somehow survived. To get a fuller understanding of what went on in those last months of the war, Goran Rosenberg consults other documents. Photos and eye-witness testimonies confirm the unspeakable horrors that many succumbed to, his father was an unusual exception.
Heroically hopeful despite overwhelming shadows
Clearly, David Rosenberg was not one to dwell on life’s dark side. Only later, does it become apparent that these nightmarish experiences were breaking him down from the deepest shadows of his mind.
As a young father, he was held up by his beloved wife, cherished son and daughter. Despite so much destruction in his earlier life, it seems he could keep hoping that the future would bring him and his growing family the joy and happiness that would crush the cruel memories.
Above all, he never, ever showed his despair openly. His children never saw or sensed the growing anxiety for which he sought medical help.
Career success seemed never to arrive
As a young boy, Goran could see that his parents did all they could to succeed in their new life. His father tried again and again to advance at work, yet the opportunities never appeared for him as they did for others.
The chance to build their own home fell through at the last minute in 1954.
His father’s brilliantly designed and produced baggage rack for VWs never got to market and his short career as a salesman flopped. In 1959, when a close business associate suddenly died in an automobile accident, Goran’s father fell into deep despair and black depression.
A father’s last hopeful tribute to his son
As his father was now away getting treatment, young Goran would worry about him and wonder when he would be home again. Towards the end of spring semester 1960, he was especially concerned that his father might miss hearing him perform on the last day of school.
Happily, his father was able to leave the hospital for a few days and could be there when Goran played the violin in a Vivaldi concerto he had been working on. This was a good day for both father and son…
… and one of the last times they saw each other. David Rosenberg died in July, 1960.
The greatest inheritance of all
Although there are many well-developed themes in this book, my most important insight was realizing what a giant of a man David Rosenberg was. He and his wife overcame enormous odds, working very hard to give their children the gift of a bright childhood and successful future.
Considering he achieved that – despite all the unspeakable suffering and trauma of his youth – David Rosenberg is surely one of the noblest beings who ever walked this earth.
http://www.rosenberg.se/artiklar_eng.html
May, 2012
Lund, Sweden
About the Author: Janet Boynton Runeson is a freelance web copywriter and director of Entrepreneurial Copy. With several advanced degrees in the Humanities, Fine Arts and Economics, she has extensive experience in international marketing and specializes in cultural awareness.
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