honour

Yesterday, we heard that Miep Gies had died, at a hundred years old. Miep was the Dutch woman who sheltered Anne Frank and her family, and saved Anne's diary. She hoped to return it to Anne after the war, but Anne died shortly before the camp she was in was liberated, and only her father survived the Holocaust. Miep returned the diary to him, he had it published, and Anne Frank still speaks to the world.

On the news yesterday she was being hailed as 'the woman who saved Anne Frank's diary', but she was more than that. She sheltered eight people at terrible risk to herself, and every day they spent in that room behind the office was another day of safety for them and danger for her. She was a true heroine, to be remembered with honour and respect.

One of the things about being married to a minister is that old people feel free to tell me their stories. They don't think of themselves as brave or heroic, they just 'got on with things', but there is heroism everywhere. If ever an old person starts telling you their stories, don't switch off or make an excuse to leave. You are being invited into a treasure house.

We can learn from the past, said Miep Gies.