I am in amulti-cultural class this summer, and one of our class periods my professor took the class to the Dallas Holocaust museum. Here are some of my reflections:
I consider myself a well educated person, and yet it is difficult to understand the enormity of the Holocaust. I have visited Anne Frank’s house and even been to Dachau. Even with the knowledge I think I have, and my experiences, I was still unprepared for the emotions I would experience while viewing the pictures and artifacts that documented the atrocities the Jewish people endured. The story of Nazi Germany and the Holocaust came alive when I viewed the pictures and saw the sadness, depression, and hollowness in the victim’s eyes. Each picture told a portion of that person’s story.
One of the displays was a pile of shoes taken from victims of the Holocaust. The simple poem below the pile stated:
“We are the shoes, We are the last witnesses
We are the shoes from the grandchildren and grandfathers.
From Prague, Paris and Amsterdam
And because we are only made from fabric and leather
And not of blood and flesh,
Each one of us avoided the hellfire.
This poem is simplistic, yet has a meaning that is very deep. It is hard for me to comprehend that something of such little value like a shoe, was preserved for museums across the world, yet something of such value (a human life) was stolen out of hatred.
As we watched the video of the survivor I was amazed at the courage it must have taken for this sweet lady to retell her story. She mentioned that her mother and herself were taken away and then separated. When she attempted to run back to her mother, a Nazi told her to get back, that she was too young to go die in the gas chambers. At the time, I am sure this man thought he was sparing her from the inevitable torture, when in fact he caused her even greater pain knowing where her mother would be going. I could not imagine myself in that situation and what emotional turmoil that would create.
When listening as this lady tells her story, I heard many emotions in her voice. However, one emotion I did not hear was hatred. In fact, she spoke kindly of the lady who oversaw the Jewish young ladies staying in the concentration camp. She recognized that this lady was there to oversee and to enforce the rules of the camp; however she had compassion for the Jewish women who were working for her.
After the visit to the Dallas holocaust Museum, I am reminded of God’s big picture for our lives. This lady’s life was spared for a reason. I am sure that if someone had told her that many years later she would be in a formal dress, standing in front of thousands of people, accepting an award for a documentary that was made about her life story, she would laugh at the impossibility. Many times the trials that we endure seem so large and impossible. It is as if we are looking out a small window and only see the mountain that is in front of us. However, God can see the big picture and knows that this mountain we are climbing actually leads us to the most beautiful scenery we have ever seen. This lady’s story has touched the lives of people across the world. Her story will make others aware and become informed citizens working to create more peaceful relationships between humans.
