remember remember
Tuesday, July 31st, 2007currently,part of our course is to study literature and one interesting piece that im doing right now is a comic written about the holocaust called Maus by Art Spigelman.
i have to say,the holocaust,though it was not a historical event i got to witness during my lifetime,it still has a profound impact on me.maybe because i was exposed to it through very stimulating material ie film and literature,or maybe because it was so ruthless,but whenever i hear the word holocaust,i cant help but shudder.it doesn’t happen for words like Jew,or German;it’s words like Auschwitz,something that doesn’t discriminate.because at the end of the day,regardless of whether those who died were Jewish,Polish,German or Russian,all these lives were exterminated.
some say 6 million Jews were killed during the massacares at Auschwitz and the other concentration camps.
generations of families wiped out in a single blow.young children who never got the chance to enjoy life to the fullest.i think what was most depressing was the helplessness that these ppl were in.i remember reading about it in Maus;how when the Germans told the Jews that they were being evacuated to another town,the Jewish families packed up their valuables and wore their best suits and clothes,thinking that they would be moved to some place good or better.
their troubles were long and difficult,being moved from their homes,to towns,to camps and finally to Auschwitz;each day,uncertain of their fate,each day fighting to survive.
for those who died,some of them died in such an unexpected manner.many of the officers who operated at these camps just chose to shoot at random at any man woman or child.what more was the atrocity of the organised mass murders,the "systematic elimination" of the sick,the feeble,the elderly and worst of all,the young children in gas chambers or by shooting.
and for those who persevered,who survived Auschwitz,only to retell its horrors to those who never witnessed it,those who lost loved ones and were left to fend for themselves in a world post-Holocaust,those who used every resource they had to fight not only for their lives,but for the lives of those whom they loved,my heart goes out to them.
as ridiculous as this may sound,i would like to,if i get the opportunity,to visit the Auschwitz memorial museum.im sure,not many ppl will consider it an ideal tourist spot,but it’s not a spot to pose and take picture and say "Hey,ive been there,here’s a fridge magnet."
its a place to remember,remember the lives that were lost,remember the devastation that mankind can create,a place to remember the value and meaning of life,and ironically,a place of hope.
despite their despair and difficulties,these ppl held on to a hope,a fragile belief that they would see the end of the war and that their lives would get better.and it did.
it must be to late,and though i will never even come close to knowing any of the Auschwitz victims or its survivors,i grieve for your loss,and i pray that you may find peace,wherever you are.
if you have read this blog all the way up to here,and if you have no idea what im talking about,educate yourself.if you agree with any of my views,then please remember the madness that was the Holocaust.
