Each of us has a name given by the sea and given by our death

[sovay]

Despite everything, I am glad I went to the City of Cambridge Annual Holocaust Commemoration at the Tremont Street Shul, because I was surrounded by people who think it is important to remember and said so. Frieda Grayzel spoke of her experience as a child survivor of both the Warsaw Ghetto and Auschwitz; Margareta Matache read the testimony of Cârjobanu Lucreția, a child survivor of the Roma concentration camp at Covalevca in Transnistria. I had encountered Irena Klepfisz's "Bashert" before, but not Zelda Schneurson Mishkovsky's "Each of Us Has a Name." I haven't been to services for more than ten years, but it seems it will take longer than that for me to forget how to say Kaddish. A Besere Velt sang "Yugnt himn," "Hulyet, hulyet, beyze vintn," and "Zog nit keyn mol." I said my great-grandfather's sisters' names.

Comments

[gwynnega]

That sounds very worthwhile.

I always loved Irena Klepfisz's work. I just looked her up, and she's still living. I wonder why she hasn't continued to publish.

[wpadmirer]

I'm very glad people do still remember. I fear the day when the last survivors are gone. I hope we never forget them.

[negothick]

Here in Eastern Connecticut, our chapter of Hadassah has put together a panel of daughters of survivors who are the story-keepers of their families. The program is called "L'Dor v'Daughters" (playing off the Hebrew for "from generation to generation"). They just filmed a video for cable access that will be shown together with the panel discussion on May 21. After that, it should be on YouTube.

[thisbluespirit]

<3

[heliopausa]

Thank you for the poem "Each of us has a name" - very sobering, thought-provoking, moving.

[cmcmck]

Romani and Jewish survivors.

That is more powerful than I can express

[ladymondegreen]

My mother always taught me that the Roma were part of our family now, because of what we went through together.

May all their memories be a blessing.

[cmcmck]

For me it's deep because as our mutual friend knows, I have both Jewish and Romani ancestry via great grandparents.

The English Roma relatives are still out there, but I lose track of the Latvian Jewish relatives in Riga in 1941/2. :o(

May we never forget.

[selkie]

Thank you for drawing on your reserves to do this. It was a very strange Holocaust Remembrance Day to get through because it feels, right now, so immediate. For the first time, I put together some materials I'd be willing to show Child. Because as much as one want to eschew phrases like they killed us, they're killing us, and Child is a savvy child who knows the difference between right and legal.

[sovay]

Thank you for drawing on your reserves to do this.

I saw the survivor singing "Yugnt-himn" and "Zog nit keyn mol" with us. I was glad to do that.

(There was also a woman who had come out through the Kindertransport. She led the saying of names.)

It was a very strange Holocaust Remembrance Day to get through because it feels, right now, so immediate.

That was part of what was so awful on the day, the immediacy. It was useful to be around people who didn't shy from it. "Let us pray that our memories keep us human," the rabbi said.

For the first time, I put together some materials I'd be willing to show Child.

What are they? I'm going to have to teach my niece someday.

*hugs*

[coraline]

i'm glad it was worthwhile.

[asakiyume]

I'm very glad you made it--it sounds profound and important.