Wednesday, April 18, 2007

MORE SORROW TO REMEMBER ...

Thank you to "oldoldlady of the hills" for this link to "pearlies of wisdom" whose April 15th post is of special significance to what I've written here, including a video with audio of the song I described below, "Ani Ma'amin."

And now Los Angeles KNX Radio reports a tragic shooting in Houston at NASA; also, a young man in LaVerne, Calif. USA is reportedly missing from his home with weapons. Does this never end?
Friday, April 20, 2006 4:30P.M. PDT

By way of updating: The young man mentioned above has been located, with those same radio news reporters saying authorities indicate the boy "was never a danger."
Sunday, April 22, 2006 1 P.M. PDT




lives forever altered


In sympathy and remembrance for the lives lost
and in tribute to those who remain
following the April 16th
tragedy at Virginia Tech.

I wanted to add a brief summary of my experience when I attended the Sunday evening "Remembrance" Yom HaShoah service about which I initially wrote. (Scroll down here to the previous April 15th piece.) Then the Virginia Tech events occurred Monday and I added the above. Subsequently, I have learned on the news that one of the casualties at Virginia Tech was a Holocaust survivor. What a tragic loss of his life, that of others, as are the injuries which additional instructors and students received.

I do want to share a few words about that earlier memorable Sunday evening Holocaust Remembrance Day commemoration service as I had originally intended.

There were some performances of heartrending
music compositions created many years ago by artists, not all of whom survived concentration camps. There was a song "Ani Ma'amin" (I Believe) reportedly sung by some on their final walk before perishing in the gas chambers.

Especially meaningful was a poem "Each of Us Has a Name" written by Ukranian-born Israeli Poet Zelda Schneersohn-Mishkovsky, better known as "Zelda."

Numerous Holocaust survivors were present including these whose personal histories were presented by younger people during a candle lighting ceremony:
Mrs. Paulette (Amariglio) Sevi
(Isaac Sevi)
Dr. Joseph Rebhun
Gabriele Silten
Jeanne Fisher
Eva Stricks
Nina Morecki

As I recall and relate only one of the experiences from many described by these survivors, a woman of small stature, I think of the wet snowy bitter cold weather currently occurring along the U.S. east coast which we refer to as a Nor'easter. This survivor as a twelve year old girl in Europe, realized the risk at which she was placing a family who had offered her refuge. She left their home to reside in a foxhole in a nearby woods where she lived for a year and a half, including through fierce winters of long duration with weather much as described here and worse.

We must always remember those from the past and now the present, who didn't survive, or whose days have since ended.


4 comments:

  1. A fitting tribute, Joared. Thanks.

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  2. Very touching words, Joared.

    I saw a beautiful heart breaking tribute on that day and I will come back and give you the link to 'Pearl'S' blog....It was called by the song you mentioned and the images are a very very touching reminder of all those lost.

    This was beautiful and the description of that service...WONDERFUL. The twelve year old who lived in a Fox Hole for a year and a half...My God, such tenacity, such resilience. Amazing and inspiring.

    I'll be back.

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  3. Joared, here is "torontopearls" URL.
    http://wwwpearliesofwisdom.blogspot.com/

    It is her Sunday, April 15th post and there are three things she posted the third and last of that day is this Video.
    She is a very lovely person, and I think you might enjoy her blog.

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  4. Thank you for the visit and the mention. (and OldOldLady of the Hills gave me a beautiful plug, too!)

    My daughter is in her Jewish day school's choir; last Sunday, they performed at a Yom Hashoah Community Memorial Service. They sang "Ani Ma'amin" and "Hatikvah." To have these children, ages 8-12, sing -- many of them grandchildren of survivors, is a wondrous and wonderful thing to behold...and these song choices are magnificent and moving.

    Thanks again for stopping by, and I'll make sure to visit your blog again too.

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