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our time.” 3 This could not have been further from the truth.
    On October 5, 1938, as German troops were marching unopposed into Sudetenland, BeneÅ¡ resigned as president, realizing that the fall of his country was inevitable. Almost a third of Czechoslovakia would now be subsumed into the growing Third Reich. The realization that the country was being pulled apart was hitting everyone in town with equal force.
    Karl arrived at school on that day with his friend George. All around them, students were huddled in small groups, some talking frantically about the impact of these new developments in the north. Others stood in muted silence, absorbing the news and barely able to comprehend the impact on themselves and their country.
    â€œEveryone looks as if they’re at a funeral,” George commented as the two boys pushed their way past their classmates and climbed the steps of the school building. “The country should have seen this one coming. Sudeten Germans have been clashing with the government forever.”
    â€œNo one could have imagined this,” replied Karl. “Countries are simply not carved up like this.”
    â€œThen you’re blind, too,” said George bitterly. There was a long pause and then he added, “Hitler’s not going to stop. He’s got Austria, and now he’s got a part of this country. It’s only the beginning.”
    â€œStop it!” demanded Karl. “You’re starting to sound more and more like my mother.”
    â€œI think she may be the one who’s got it right after all,” George replied, breathing deeply. “If Hitler can take over a third of our country just like that, who knows what else he’s capable of doing. The man is hungry for more. He’s like a bear that smells blood – he’ll stalk his prey until he devours it all.”
    Karl had never heard his friend sound so cynical or contemptuous. The two boys stood silently watching their fellow students begin to assemble for the start of classes. A strange stillness had settled on the school grounds – a sense of dark foreboding.
    â€œThere may be an advantage for us in all of this,” said Karl, as the students began to enter the building. “As long as Czechs are focused on Germans, either here or in Germany, perhaps they’ll be less likely to focus on us.”
    â€œI doubt it,” replied George. “I suspect that Jewish families living in the north are going to be flooding into this part of the country. Why would Jews want to stay there knowing how much Hitler hates them – hates us? And if you think Jews are going to be welcomed here, then you’re totally naive. I can’t wait to get out of here,” he added, “to get to Prague where at least it doesn’t feel as if everyone knows you and is watching you. I just wish my family were coming with me. You need to get out, too.”
    Within the Reiser household, Leila was particularly distraught over the news of the annexation of Sudetenland. It was difficult for her to understand the bitter fragmentation of her country. Her roots were in Sudetenland, where she had been born and where she still had relatives. And yet, her heart was here with the family she had been with for almost two decades.
    Later that day, Karl walked home with Leila after accompanying her to the market to pick up some groceries.
    â€œWhat would I do without your family?” Leila muttered as she struggled to keep up with Karl’s long stride. “Yours is the only home I know.”
    Karl squeezed Leila’s arm reassuringly. He glanced around to make sure no one was listening. Leila’s Czech was extremely limited, and German was the only language she spoke in the Reiser home. But here in public, Karl was cautious about responding. These days, speaking German was probably as dangerous as acknowledging one’s Judaism. He did not want to provoke anti-German sentiments any