Yom Hashoah 2006, by Yahal Porat
61 years have passed. Most of those who were there, but survived, are not with us any more. We must keep telling the story, so no one will forget. Ever. We, as those who suffered should be the most moral and sensitive to human beings where ever they are.
Almost all of us have our own family story about those who were murdered by the Nazis. My family has a unique one as well:
My grand-grand father was a brilliant chess player. Back in the 1920’s he left Poland to re-settle in Brussels, being a diamond machined. The economic situation was very good back then, and my grandmother decided to revolt and to make Aliyah. She came to build a new kibbutz in the Sharon, kibbutz Ein hachoresh, were she met my grand father.
But her family did not left the Diaspora, even when the Nazis came to power. So they were caught and forced to live in the ghetto. But one of the officers was a chess player himself, and recognized the Belgian-champ, my grand-grand father. So he decided to let him stay longer in the ghetto, and to amuse him by playing against him almost every night.
That of course was not enough to keep him alive, but the chess gave him a few more months of living.
This story shows us a few things, and especially the different perspectives of two generations: the elders’ believed that some how the Nazis will vanish as suddenly as they appeared. The youngsters chose to take action. This lesson was shown especially by the revival in Warsaw ghetto.
Led by Mordechy Anilevich, youth movements’ members fought against the Nazis, with barely any food or arms. Among them were a few hundred members of Dror, a Zionist-socialist movement, that later became part of Habonim to form Habonim Dror.
It was very hard not only to physically fight, but especially to understand that one is about to give up his life, and that will not bring any win at all. It was clear to the youth movement members first that action must be taken, not only by trying to buy some more time. By January 1943 they have come to understand that the Nazis will murder finally each and every of the Jews. So they decided to unite, to overcome massive ideological issues, in order to fight back, to give life but not to surrender.
Youth of Dror took part in that brave, if not crazy act, while in the ghetto. Thanks to them and others who fought and decided not to give up, we are here today.
And they did not ask us to try to be like them. All they asked us is to remember, and to choose the right thing to do.
For more info and interesting articles:
http://www.jewishagency.org/JewishAgency/English/Jewish+Education/Jewish+Time/Festivals+and+Memorial+Days/
Holocaust+Memorial+Day/Revolt/?WBCMODE=PresentationUnpublished
http://www.jewishagency.org/JewishAgency/English/Jewish+Education/Jewish+Time/Festivals+and+Memorial+Days/Holocaust+
Memorial+Day/The+Holocaust+significant+difference.htm
Yad vashem: http://www.yad-vashem.org.il/education/index_education.html |
