 "Both my parents were in Auschwitz and survived  The Death March.  My father, deceased since 1979, never spoke about his experiences. My mother, on the other hand, continuously made references to the  miracle  of her survival and recounted in vivid detail what it was like to walk for miles in the bitter cold with just a blanket and a pair of wooden shoes ( Trepches ). She tells a story of how one night when the entire column of inmates took a rest at a nearby farm, she found a small sack of sugar cubes in a hay loft, which kept her and a companion alive for several days. She recalls how the German soldiers would confront a weakened inmate who paused for a moment s rest with the following shout:  Kanst du lofen?  (can you walk?) If the reply was negative or not forthcoming, she would be shot on the spot.