I feel more miserable than I have in months. Even after the break-in I didn’t feel so utterly broken, inside and out. On the one hand, there’s the news about Mr. van Hoeven, the Jewish question (which is discussed in detail by everyone in the house), the invasion (which is so long in coming), the awful food, the tension, the miserable atmosphere, my disappointment in Peter. On the other hand, there’s Bep’s engagement, the Pentecost reception, the flowers, Mr. Kugler’s birthday, cakes and stories about cabarets, movies and concerts. That gap, that enormous gap, is always there. One day we’re laughing at the comical side of life in hiding, and the next day (and there are many such days), we’re frightened, and the fear, tension and despair can be read on our faces.

— Anne Frank, The Diary of a Young Girl, Penguin Books (2008), p. 305, 1947