By By Ron James
My dad has been gone since 1996 but i’m reminded frequently
of the number indelibly branded on his powerful right arm
B2299 (please print in large & bolded letters & numbers)
Its when i hear a survivors story, wonder how i would have done in the same circumstances
or hearing someone saying that it actually never happened….
It’s a reminder that something terribly wrong happened
in a terrible place called Auschwitz as well as many other places
where the nazis employed systematic killing machines aganist 6 million Jews
as well as the millions of others who survived the horrors.
Its a reminder that my dad was tasked
with a terrible job in a terrible place;
so terrible that the nazis apparently
vowed to never allow any from that unit
to survive…..for the world would never be the
same if they knew what they witnessed!!
My mom, who i’m blessed to still have with me, was a child
in hiding in poland at the hands of righteous gentiles. Her story is no less
horrifying except for the fact that they were experienced and seen from the eyes
of a scared little child. Living without food in constant fear was the way
she and my grandma remained in a hole under a cow barn in terrible conditions
for what was way too long for any of us to imagine….?
I guess this is all coming up for me now as i hear the news about
a presidential candidate who wants to keep a group of people out of the country
for what he believes is the safety & security of the lands inhabitants.
And with his statement come the many voices of outrage from all races & religions.
WHERE were those voices of outrage 70 years ago when my family and all the other jewish brothers & sisters were being marched to their deaths? Were they less deserving to live their lives the way Hashem wanted?
Where were the voices??
Ron James lives in San Diego with his wife and seven year old son
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