RE: Auschwitz, Seventy Years Later: A Short Story, and Context
To me it was a bit of a surreal experience. A lot of Hebrew text everywhere. A lot of dark humor in my mind - it's how I deal with it. Shit like: "Should I pack some food or is there an Auschwitz snack shop?" and "Should I take some ashes from Birkenau and put it in an urn in the living room? Technically, it's family ashes."
Perhaps the most surprising thing to me about that visit was the number of Steemians from all over the world who attended this trip. To me, living in Israel, the Holocaust is the horrible thing that happened to our ancestors. One to remember and never relive. Seeing other people from all over the world take it in, cry, remember with us is... awe-inspiring. I was pretty sure Barak and I would be the only ones taking time off partying to visit Auschwitz, but when I read @roelandp organized buses and a tour, I was speechless and grateful. The universe decided for me I needed to be there with Barak, to learn more about his family history.
Well said, @techslut. Including the bit about the Auschwitz snack shop. Yes, they had several. Human need doesn't go away just because we face things that are difficult, right? We still need to eat, pee, scratch an itch. But yes, it's jarring and incongruous to see folks standing around waiting their turn to tour the grounds of Auschwitz, eating a hot dog. One has to find a way to parse it all, even if through humor.
I'm glad to hear the experience was somehow fortifying for you and Barak. I can only imagine what it must be like to piece together bits of this horrid past from your own ancestry. The fact that his grandfather really did not want to tell his story, that he preferred to lock it down and push it away is both understandable and devastating. What details might you know if he had told them instead, or written them down? But everyone deals with their life's woes in different ways. I've spent time wondering what I would have done in his place. It is unimaginable. But that rich past, that story, is an incredible piece of personal history.
I didn't mention it in the post, but this short story was directly inspired by what I learned from you and Barak. While "enjoy" is probably not the right word, I did enjoy hearing you two talk about it.