In the Search of Happiness

In order to gain closure and move on from an incident causing much pain and heartache such as the Holocaust, one must find the strength to forgive the people who commit such horrible acts. Survivors unable to let the pain go and forgive will physically live on, but mentally and spiritually they will never be alive again. To be a true survivor, one must be able to live a happy life after a terrible event and can only begin to live again once they have achieved peace in their heart and in their soul. A survivor of the Holocaust must fully accept what happened to them and their loved ones in order to begin the process of forgiveness needed to achieve peace within their hearts. Other survivors, like Elie, need to find the strength to confront this inner turmoil. The strength to confront inner turmoil comes from realizing the only way to free oneself of it is to not forget but forgive the tormentors. Forgiving people who have done horrible things to you and ones you love is on of the hardest things you must do, but you have to do it to attain true happiness.