Four Perfect Pebbles: A Holocaust Survival Story

On Thursday, Jan. 22, Redlands East Valley (REV) High School hosted Mrs. Marion Lazan, author of “Four Perfect Pebbles,” a story that highlights her struggle as a Jewish German during WWII, the German invasion of Holland and the concentration camps she was forced to endure through most of her childhood. Lazan has spoken in over 37 states and five different countries around the world. The stands of REV were crowded and floors covered with students and staff who were awaiting Lazan's presentation. Lazan began by telling the students how unexpected the events were that occurred during WWII. “Never did we think that the anti-semitic incidents would amount to very much,” Lazan said. “Life in 1935 was growing exceedingly more difficult. Jews were not allowed into theatres, into parks, or into swimming pools. All public schools were closed to Jewish children. Jews were only allowed to shop specific hours during the day.” It was at this time that Lazan’s parents attempted to leave Holland. Lazan recalled the night of Nov. 9, 1938, known as Kristallnacht, or the Night of Broken Glass, when Nazis and their followers ravaged Jewish homes and businesses. “This was the beginning of the massive erupt against the Jews in Germany; a massive verbal and physical assault against all German Jews,” said Lazan. “In reality, this was the beginning of the Holocaust.” Lazan recalled that the Jewish population had actually been fined for the damage caused that night. On the dawn of Kristallnacht, Lazan’s father was taken away from their home, only to be returned 10 days later since their immigration papers were already in order to leave to America. “All sorts of terrible stories were relayed to my mother,” Lazan recalled. “We weren’t sure if we would ever see my father again.” In December of 1939, Lazan and her family were sent to the detention center, where they were to await their departure for America. It is here that Lazan would wait each week as other Jewish people in their company were shipped off to concentration camps every Tuesday morning. “This area became known as the 'area of complete misery',” Lazan recalled. In 1942, Lazan and her family were chosen to be transported to the extermination and concentration camps. “I remember the bitter-cold, pitch-black, rainy night when we arrived at our destination: concentration camp Bergen-Belsen in Germany. We were pulled and dragged by our arms by German guards who were shouting at us and threatening us with their rifles and with the most vicious attack dogs. I was a very frightened nine-year-old,” Lazan said. Bergen-Belson, originally a prisoner-of-war camp, was divided into four subcamps: the "special camp," the "neutrals camp," the "hungarian camp" and the "star camp." In April, 1945, the population of Bergen-Belson was 60,000. “I remember my first time seeing a wagon, filled with what I thought was firewood…I soon realized that the wagons were filled with naked dead bodies,” said Lazan. Lazan went on to tell the crowd of teenagers that she remembers going into the large chambers once a month for group showers, but never being sure whether gas or water would come out from the pumps. Lazan’s diet consisted of a slice of bread per day and a bucket of watery soup, filled with turnips. Approximately 3.5 million people died due to the conditions of concentration camps during WWII. “The constant foul odor, the filth and continuous horror, being surrounded by death is indescribable. There is no way, accurately, to put it into words or pictures.” It was because of this misery that Lazan had began playing a superstitious game that would predict the life or death of herself and her family members. Lazan, at the age of 10 years old, would pass the time by collecting pebbles. She would look for pebbles that were similar in size and if she was unable to find four matching pebbles, one for each of her family members, that respective family member would die. It is from this game that her book, “Four Perfect Pebbles,” was inspired. Lazan was rescued in the spring of 1945 by the Russian army on her way to an extermination camp. She now has three children, nine grandchildren, and three great-granddaughters. Lazan ended her presentation by sharing that at the end of the day, if she hadn’t found four perfect pebbles, she would cheat and grab a previous pile of rocks from the previous day. “Maybe it was cheating,” she said. “But it was my game. I was the one who got to make the rules.” After the presentation, students stood up to ask questions about Lazan and her life. "How are you so forgiving?" one REV student asked. "I am an optimist and I stay away from the negativity in my life," Lazan spoke out. "But I will never forgive those who are directly responsible for what happened." Students crowded after the presentation to hug and take photos with Lazan. “Somehow she has this gift,” said Nathaniel, Lazan’s husband of 61 years. “This gift to help people overcome many different types of problems.”