Besa

     Norman Gershman decided to adventure out on a little project. He wanted to travel to Albania and listen to the stories of Muslim rescuers who saved over 2,000 Jews during World War Two. As an artist, Gershman also took photographs of each of the rescuers. Albania is one of the poorest countries in Europe but they seemed to have the biggest of hearts. The king of Albania at the time made orders to not turn away any Jews. With that, over 400 passports were handed out, and some even received visa's. Like all Jews in Europe at that time, they had to blend in to their surroundings. Most Jewish women would have to put on a hijab to blend into society. Jews also had to eat cheese with their meat even though that is forbidden in Jewish culture. Muslim families would even hand over their businesses to Jewish families so they could work and seem like they belong. As someone stated in the movie, "let them kill our family before they kill our guests". It was particularly hard for the children as they learned quickly when to be quiet and when not to make eye contact. They were given to Muslim families so their lives could be saved. One of these children happened to be Aaron who was placed in the hands of the Hoxha family. Aaron's parents had to flee but his father left 3 important Jewish books in the hands of the Hoxha's. Mr. Hoxha ended up dying but made his son promise him that the books will get to Aaron. This type of promise is called a Besa, which is what the movie title happens to be. A "besa" is keeping a promise no matter how hard it is to keep. It was Hoxha's mission to find Aaron even if Aaron didn't want the books back. When they were finally able to meet up in Israel, Aaron wasn't fond of the idea of thinking back to those tough times. Turns out, his parents didn't treat him with any affection and he felt disconnected. The beauty is, Hoxha's parents came in and treated him like one of their own. Remembering his past brought Aaron to tears and Hoxha felt like he passed the torch as he completed his best. However, it wouldn't of been made possible without Gershman, as he searched for these Albanian rescuers and their stories.
     I loved this movie because Norman Gershman had such a great idea and actually put it to action. Traveling to Albania and finding rescuers had to of been tricky, but he did it nonetheless! Each story is unique and that's what made the movie so appealing. Especially learning about new cultures and religions. I think it's important to not only observe how the rescuers felt but the Jews as well. The movie allowed us to see both sides and then come together in harmony at the end. I loved Gorshman's idea to photograph each rescuer with a pose or item that tells a story. It makes the situation that much more meaningful. We can learn a lot from the Albanian's who saved over 2,000. Where can we get that strength and courage? Well, we get it from examples and Besa was that example!