Normally I write once a week, but felt I needed to say a word or two about January 27th, Holocaust Memorial Day.
In the Summer of 1945 the British Government offered 1000 orphans of the Nazi camps a place in the UK.
Only 732 could be found, and they were collectively known as The Boys, even though there were 82 girls.
I don't feel able to write, to describe, I have no concept of what they went through, no idea of how they must have felt coming to a strange land, to hostels where their lives would slowly be rebuilt.
But I know that their courage must be honoured.
This is a Memory quilt, one of several made for the 70th anniversary of the Liberation, on exhibition in the London Jewish Museum until 7th February.
Zdenka Husserl, one of the 'Boys' is gazing at it, one of the squares being made by her.
What goes through her mind?
The service broadcast tonight from the Guildhall in London reminded us that this terrible atrocity must never be forgotten.
20 comments:
I so agree, never, ever must the Holocaust be forgotten. I have read so much, seen so many photos, and old film, when in Europe's museums, but never visited the Holocaust Museum here in Washington, D.C. Sometimes it's so overwhelmingly sad and upsetting I just can't look anymore. The photos from the camps are like the worst possible nightmare and to think there are people who still refuse to believe it ever happened - incredulous!
I did not know anything about the orphans called 'The Boys'. Thankfully they at least were saved, but hundreds of thousands were not.
Mary -
I was a three year old seventy years ago at the time of the Liberation. I feel those of a similar age to me are very much aware of the horrors of the Holocaust.
When we were in the UK we visited the Imperial War Museum where we saw The Holocaust Exhibition, it is a permanent exhibition and a chilling reminder of that horrific time.
For Zdenka Husserl it would have been a very emotional day studying the patches which make up the Memory Quilt and bringing back such sad memories of being separated from her family.
Thank you for writing this post and sharing it with us.
We will never forget.
What a terrible thing that they went through. I can't even begin to imagine. I worked with someone many years ago that had been a Holocaust survivor and his life had not been easy.
What a terrible thing that they went through. I can't even begin to imagine. I worked with someone many years ago that had been a Holocaust survivor and his life had not been easy.
As the last of them grow old we must not let the world forget what we humans were - and stills seem to be - capable of.
We must never forget - and we must continue to strive for the hundreds of orphaned children who still tramp across Europe seeking a safe and loving home.
Thank you for sharing this little bit of history. It's hard to imagine the feelings of those times, and the horrors that so many lived through. As I was reading other comments about this day, I was reminded that the Jewish people are not the only ones persecuted during that time - anybody who didn't 'fit the bill' was included, which means anybody of color, and sometimes even anybody who only had dark hair, and people who had any kind of physical or mental disability. I'd like to see our world acknowledge ALL who suffered at the hands of these persecutors.
One could not even imagine the horrors that those precious Jewish people went through during that time. The children who were separated from their parents - the aftermath would have taken decades to heal. So great of the British government to take in those young ones. Thank for this post.
The horrors of those days must never be repeated, yet I am so saddened by the atrocities that humans continue to inflict on others. I can't imagine the thoughts running through Zdenka's mind as she reflects on the past.
Hi Elizabeth! I think this is a wonderful way to honor the people who went through terrible deprivation, just because of ethnicity or religion. Worth breaking out of your usual weekly calendar.
I remember reading that there are people who want to deny that the Holocaust ever happened. May God keep us from these people. We MUST remember what happened, how else will we understand how we cannot ever do it again?
Beautiful.
Ceil
May we never forget this indeed! I did not know it was the day to remember the Holocaust. An incredibly tragic time in the history of the world. Thank you for sharing this story with us.
This is one of the problems that we are having here in the US. Everybody seems offended by everything -- the Civil War comes to mine-- and different groups of people want all memory of these events to be eliminated. That scares me -- we must remember these terrible historical events because if we don't we stand the chance of having it happen again. We have a Holocaust Museum here in Dallas and it is the saddest place I have ever been -- a close second is the 6th Floor Museum of the Kennedy Assassination which is right next door.
I totally agree and what an impressive gesture just after the war.
Have a good day!
I made myself watch some programmes last week on the Holocaust and the filmed evidence which was incredibly hard to watch. To think that lives could be just ended by the look of a guard or being moved to a different line sends shivers down my spine. These 'boys' were incredibly brave. Thank you for posting about this.
Wow. So heart wrenching. I hope we never forget.
Wow. So heart wrenching. I hope we never forget.
One of my daughters is writing a fiction book set at the time of WWII, and my son has been studying WWII. I don't think we'll ever truly know the pain, heartache, terror, suffering, courage and sorrow it all involved.
Thanks for honoring them.
Thanks for dropping by Harvest Lane Cottage and commenting.
Laura Lane
Interesting (and very saddening) information! Thanks for sharing Elizabeth!
Yes, yes! We must never forget!
We must never forget! Thank you for such a poignant post, Barbara.
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