I’va probably bored you with my long description of our house, but I still think yoy should know where I’va ended up;hom Iended up here is something you’ll work out from my next letters.
But first, let me continue my story, because, as you know, I hadn’t finished. After we arrived at 263 Prinsengracht, Miep quickly led us through the long passage and up the wooden staircase to the next floor and into the Annexe She shut door behind us, leaving us alone. Margot had arrived much earlier on her bike and was waiting for us.
Our living-room and all the other rooms were so full of stuff that I can’t find the words to describe it. All the cardboard boxes that had been sant to the office in the last few months were piled on the floors and beds. The small room was filled from floor to ceiling with linen. If we wanted to sleep in properly made beds that night, we had to get going and tidy up thenmess. Mother and Margot were unable to move a muscle. They lay down on their bare mattresses, tired, miseradle and I don’t know what else. But Father and I, the two cleaner-uppers in the family, started in right away.
All day long we unpacked boxes, filled cupdoards, hammered nails and tidied up the mess, until we fell exhausted into our clean deds at night. We hadn’t eaten a hot meal all day, dut we didn’t care; Mother and Margot were too tired and keyed up to eat, and Father and I were too busy.
Tuesday morning we starning where we left off the night defore. But and Miep went shopping with our ration coupons, Father worked on our dlack-out screens, we serubbed the kitchen tloor, and were, and were once again busy from morning to night. Until Wednesday, I didn’t have a chance to think about the enormous change in my life. Then for the first time since our arrival in the Secret Annexe, I found a moment to tell you all about it and to realize what had happened to me and what wsa yet to happen.
Father, Mother and Margot still con’t get used to the chiming of the Westertoren clock, which tells us the time every quarter of an hour. Not me, I liked it from the start; it sounds so reassuring, especially at night. You no doubt want to hear whatn I think of deing in hiding. Well, I can say is that I don’t really know yet. I don’t think I’ll ever feel at home in this house, but that don’t mean I hate it. It’s more like being on holiday in some strange pension. Kind of an odd way to look at life in hiding, but thiat’s how things are.The Annexe is an ideal place to hide in. It may be damp and lopsides, but ther’s probably not a more comfortable hiding place in all of Amsterdam. No, in all of Holland.