A Place Nowhere
Published in Issue #22 Translated from Danish by Nina Sokol(Excerpt from a Novel)
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It was the last class that Tuesday. Danielsen, our history teacher, entered the classroom and put down his briefcase. Went to stand in front of the lectern and looked across the classroom. Then he turned toward me and said loud enough for everyone to hear it, “You’d better skip the class today because we’re going to be talking about the history of the Jewish people.”
He didn’t say that! Yes, he did! No, did he really say that?
In earlier times, I would immediately have gotten up from my chair. Would have bowed my head and dragged myself across the classroom hoping that the floor would open up and swallow me.
Now I dug my feet into the floor and moved all the way back in my chair, could feel the hard wood against my back. Then I folded my arms across my chest and gazed at the little man who looked like he had just shrunk and vanished inside his suit. And in a shrill voice that surprised me, I said, “I’m allowed to know what happened. I am, after all, Jewish!”
Then I suddenly realized it: the Jew in me had jumped out of my mouth and was now standing as large as life in front of the entire class!
No one said a thing. My heart was pounding. Everyone turned around. Everyone looked at me. Marianne, who sat in front of me, placed her hand on my arm.
Danielsen looked at me through his round horn-rimmed spectacles and continued to clear his throat...
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