Three Quarter Life Crisis: Life or Principles

I was listening to a program where a remarkable individual shared his story of being smuggled out of Amsterdam during World War 2. As a two and a half year old Jew, his parents made the difficult decision to sneak him out of the country. He could not be relied upon to stay quiet when the Gestapo (Hitler’s Nazi police) performed their inspections. His unreliability would have compromised the safety of the rest of his family and the German family that was hiding them.

He was entrusted with a seventeen year old girl who acquired a fake passport for him. She sneaked him out by train, risking her life for a child that she barely knew. For the next twenty years, this man struggled to understand why a complete stranger would undertake such a mortal risk for him. After his divorce with a high school sweetheart, he fell into a deep depression and visited a psychiatrist.

He shared this story with the psychiatrist and expressed his frustration at his inability to fathom the motivation of the seventeen year old girl who risked it all for a complete stranger.

The psychiatrist said, “it’s simple.”

“It‘s simple? I’ve been wrought by this for the past twenty years,” he lamented.

“She chose her principles over her life,” the psychiatrist said a-matter-of-factly.

People may be complicated, but they can also be simple. Some people choose life over principles, while others choose principles over life. The former group would do anything to save their own skin. The latter would rather die than abandon their principles.

This story resonated with me. It led me to understand that everyone should have a set of principles to live by. This set of principles may differ from person to person. However, as long as we live by it, it facilitates the direction of all aspects of life.

Back to the story: The orphanage he was sent to failed to send a message to his parents. Back home, his parents were deathly worried. His mother demanded that they find a phone to call the orphanage, or she would venture out to do it herself. The two Jews then ventured out into Gestapo territory, only to be caught in an air raid where they were forced to duck into a butchery for cover. Seeing the Jewish couple in their shop, the butcher immediately called the Gestapo. By the time it was safe to step out, the Gestapo were waiting at the door to place them under arrest for, well, simply being Jewish.

Unlike the seventeen year old girl, this butcher chose his life over principles. He was rewarded with some money and rations for turning in the pair. As a result of his actions, the couple was sent to Auschwitz where they suffered immeasurably.

Now, being cognizant of the principle/life divide; I realize that I’ve always subconsciously known where I stood. It has helped me to reconcile with several of my less judicious life choices while also helping me to understand others better. Perhaps it could help you too.