Auschwitz

New Year's Eve: Auschwitz

"FOREVER LET THIS PLACE BE
A CRY OF DESPAIR
AND A WARNING TO HUMANITY,
WHERE THE NAZIS MURDERED
ABOUT ONE AND HALF
MILLION
MEN, WOMEN, AND CHILDREN,
MAINLY JEWS
FROM VARIOUS COUNTRIES
OF EUROPE."

AUSCHWITZ - BIRKENAU
1940 - 1945

Humans have not created a language to appropriately describe the emotions one feels when faced with such a powerful experience. Appalling, humbling, overwhelming, surreal, and others come to mind, but no words do justice to how we felt today.

Having read Elie Wiesel's Night, donated to each student by Walton and Jeff Selig, along with other studies and a great overview by our guide on the way, students were prepared with significant background knowledge, but there is no substitute for an authentic educational experience like we had today. No documentary, no lecture, and no photos could ever compare to walking the grounds and seeing the evidence first hand.

Riding on the bus to the site, a few students voiced their concerns and apprehensions about what to expect. It gave us the opportunity to discuss the fact that each person's experience will be unique and that there is no correct emotion. The weather was perfectly fitting, in my opinion, to set a solemn mood: very cold, overcast, and gray. It also provided a stark contrast to the previous day's blue sky in Zakopane (again fitting).

We were fortunate to have an extended guided tour through both the Auschwitz and Birkenau camps. As powerful as Aschwitz is, for me at least, Birkenau is even more so, simply due to its vastness and sheer magnitude. At every step of the way, as we all moved together through the snow, I found myself wondering how human beings could have ever participated in such heinous acts. Normally on trips, my favorite part is watching the students as they are faced with situations that help them learn and understand more about the world in which we live. While today certainly would qualify, I was too engrossed in the experience to watch them as they toured with me. I only wish that all students, regardless of country or school, could have this opportunity. If so, perhaps we could avoid the genocides that continue to plague our world.

Our tour guide told me at the end of our tour that he has been guiding at Auschwitz for over twenty years, and never in this time has he seen a group go through and maintain a mature focus like our group did today. There was no joking, and the only talking was about their emotions. Needless to say, I was proud of their behavior, but the highlight for me was hearing the group sing Elegy for Dachau at the Memorial where the quote above is forever etched. As the group gathered around the memorial to prepare to sing, the wind that had been blustery all day abated, and large flakes of snow began to fall. Other than just a couple of other people, we were the only ones there, an ideal setting for Hammond to give back to the site that gave us so much today. We gave Auschwitz our gift of song, and in return we received a gift that will stay with each and every one of us for the rest of our lives.
As soon as our children finished the song, the snowflakes stopped, and the wind resumed.

Happy New Year.

Best,
Chris