Siena Hoefling
'The Happiest Man on Earth,' Holocaust survivor Eddie Jaku
FacebookTwitter
By Siena Hoefling
January 29, 2025

I recently stumbled on a book with the curious title The Happiest Man on Earth: The Beautiful Life of an Auschwitz Survivor, by Eddie Jaku. A word of warning. Most of the book is anything but happy. The matter-of-fact writing style is disarming, until you are pulled in by the madness of Kristallnacht, and the upheaval of innocent lives never restored to their proper place.

The details are alarmingly clear. Other Holocaust survivors can still relate vivid memories, even in old age, and Eddie is no exception. His recollection is remarkable. In the years leading up to his death at age 101, Eddie demonstrated a brilliantly sharp mind in interview after interview. He had the strength to stand and give a TEDx talk at age 99. His one and only book was published not long afterward.

In his TEDx talk, Eddie said: “If you’re healthy and happy, you’re a millionaire. Happiness also brings good health to the body and mind, and I attribute my 99 years of health mostly to the positive and happy attitude. One flower is my garden. One good friend is my world.”

Eddie learned to give up on hate: “Hate is a disease which may destroy your enemy, but will also destroy you in the process.”

Quotes from Eddie’s book:

“If you lose your morals, you lose yourself.”

“Under the Nazi regime, a German man was not immediately an evil man, he was weak and easily manipulated. And slowly but surely, these weak men lost all of their morals and then their humanity. They became men who could torture others and then still go home and face their wives and children.”

“I never lost sight of what it was to be civilised. I knew that there would be no point surviving if I had to become an evil man to do it.”

“With a simple act of kindness, you can save another person from despair, and that might just save their life.”

For more information, click on photo

Full Audio Book: 'The Happiest man on the earth' by Eddie Jaku

Subscribe to Siena Hoefling

© Siena Hoefling

 

The views expressed by RenewAmerica columnists are their own and do not necessarily reflect the position of RenewAmerica or its affiliates.
(See RenewAmerica's publishing standards.)

 

Stephen Stone
HAPPY EASTER: A message to all who love our country and want to help save it

Stephen Stone
The most egregious lies Evan McMullin and the media have told about Sen. Mike Lee

Siena Hoefling
Protect the Children: Update with VIDEO

Stephen Stone
FLASHBACK to 2020: Dems' fake claim that Trump and Utah congressional hopeful Burgess Owens want 'renewed nuclear testing' blows up when examined

Jerry Newcombe
Anarchy versus liberty

Steve A. Stone
Thoughts about the Israel-Iran war

Pete Riehm
Winners versus whiners

Peter Lemiska
Reconstituting the Democrat Party: A proposed six-point plan

Rev. Mark H. Creech
Fathers forgotten: The quiet epidemic of estrangement

Cliff Kincaid
Enforce the Communist Control Act

Frank Louis
The state of…well, everything: in a nutshell

Jerry Newcombe
Humility—the missing ingredient

Pete Riehm
California rebels, while Mexico 'declares war'

Curtis Dahlgren
1860s Nihilists, 1960s hippies, and 2025 rioters

Linda Goudsmit
The Sesame Street seduction

Tom DeWeese
Are you prepared to fight for your own freedom?
  More columns

Cartoons


Click for full cartoon
More cartoons

Columnists

Matt C. Abbott
Chris Adamo
Russ J. Alan
Bonnie Alba
Chuck Baldwin
Kevin J. Banet
J. Matt Barber
Fr. Tom Bartolomeo
. . .
[See more]

Sister sites