The Fear of a Long Face
On September 16, 1943, Anne Frank wrote a diary entry that reveals the deep psychological toll of living in hiding. She confessed to a profound sadness, one that even her daily dose of valerian pills—a common remedy for anxiety—couldn’t touch. “I swallow valerian pills every day against worry and depression, but it doesn’t prevent me from being even more miserable the next day,” she wrote.
This entry is a powerful glimpse into the mind of a girl who, at just fourteen years old, was grappling with a darkness that would consume most adults. Her words are raw and honest, a stark contrast to the hope she often wrote about. She knew what would help her more than any medicine: “A good hearty laugh would help more than 10 Valerian pills.” But the simple act of laughter had become a rarity.
Her final lines are perhaps the most heartbreaking. She expressed a poignant fear that her sadness would physically change her, that she would “grow a long face and my mouth will droop at the corners.” This is the fear of a child losing her youthful spirit, her spontaneity, and her very essence. It is a fear that her soul, not just her body, was being held captive.
Anne’s diary entry is a testament to the fact that her struggle was not just against the Nazis, but also against the despair that threatened to consume her from within. It reminds us that even when we are stripped of our freedom, we must fight to hold on to our joy and our spirit.
