EAYC Poland Trip 2010
By Esther Donoff
I have always wanted to visit Poland, but it was never the right time for me to go. I am very grateful that I was able to visit Krakow, Auschwitz and the other memorials with members of my community. I felt that we made a visual statement going as an obviously Jewish group, showing that we are still here, we are proud Jews – Am Yisrael Chai.
The place that made the most impact on me and that I think about most often was the mass graves at Zbylitowska Gore – the thought of those poor innocent children ripped out of their mother’s arms and murdered keeps me awake on many a night. As a mother, I cannot imagine the thoughts of those other mothers who had to watch their children brutally wrenched away from them and shot in cold blood into those graves.
I thought that the Poland trip would help me to understand the Churban, but I now know that I will never understand how humans can act towards fellow humans in the most hateful and evil manner, and the depths to which man can sink.
My grateful thanks go to Jonny and Ben who did an amazing job organising the trip. They took care of every single detail so that all we had to think about was what we were seeing, hearing and feeling.
I also want to thank our guides Rabbi Lieberman and Sara Pellach who brought their own special personal touch to the trip, making it a memorable and meaningful experience.
I have always wanted to visit Poland, but it was never the right time for me to go. I am very grateful that I was able to visit Krakow, Auschwitz and the other memorials with members of my community. I felt that we made a visual statement going as an obviously Jewish group, showing that we are still here, we are proud Jews – Am Yisrael Chai.
The place that made the most impact on me and that I think about most often was the mass graves at Zbylitowska Gore – the thought of those poor innocent children ripped out of their mother’s arms and murdered keeps me awake on many a night. As a mother, I cannot imagine the thoughts of those other mothers who had to watch their children brutally wrenched away from them and shot in cold blood into those graves.
I thought that the Poland trip would help me to understand the Churban, but I now know that I will never understand how humans can act towards fellow humans in the most hateful and evil manner, and the depths to which man can sink.
My grateful thanks go to Jonny and Ben who did an amazing job organising the trip. They took care of every single detail so that all we had to think about was what we were seeing, hearing and feeling.
I also want to thank our guides Rabbi Lieberman and Sara Pellach who brought their own special personal touch to the trip, making it a memorable and meaningful experience.
By Michael White
Being second generation to a holocaust survivor and third generation of a holocaust victim, I was made aware of the tragedy that befell our people from about age 10 (that's 50 years ago, yuk!) and, like many others, continue with (still) increasing incredulity, to read books, watch documentaries, speak to survivors, attend lectures etc., on the subject.
It's neither a a morbid nor a ghoulish fascination - it's probably some kind of a quest, and undoubtedly one that is bound to fail (though I'll never give up), to try and understand why and how what happened, actually did happen. There's also the inability to really grasp the enormity and the scale of the Nazi's plan to wipe out and totally eradicate a nation, our Jewish nation, of millions, ultimately (as far as Hitler and his thugs were concerned) throughout the world, never mind 'just' Europe.
The Jewish world now, and for always, are the living result of the 'fallout' caused by Hitler's significant, though thankfully ultimately failed, plan, and that is something that we and future generations must be kept aware of. We too have to understand ourselves, and pass on to our children, that for the world's nations, 6000000 is just a conveniently round number synonymous with 'the holocaust'; but for us, it is representative of the 6000000 plus, individual and precious souls lost, all of whom are deserving of our memory for all time.
As part of this whole process, I felt it was absolutely necessary I went on this short trip. Despite it predictably throwing up significantly more questions than answers, it proved to be an important and vital addition to my quest.
Any words to describe my thoughts and feelings about the two remarkable ladies who spoke to us before and after our trip, would sound like platitudes, such is their incredible effect, so I will resist the temptation. I hope though, that that says everything about them and their effect on me.
A footnote: From a personal perspective, in the same way as Rabbi Lieberman expressed a feeling of some kind of a common bond with the group, I too have found that the trip opened my eyes and mind to the fact that age and social groupings within our community, any Jewish community, should not serve as a barrier to open and cordial relationships between those groupings. Yes, I admit I was blind to that simple fact! Whilst, for example, 'street-kiddushim' are a great idea to try and achieve the same end, the fact is they are only of limited and short-term effectiveness. For me, at least, it has taken this shared experience to, if you like, 'see the light', probably for more reasons than I am able to appreciate thus far.
I strongly doubt a 2-day shul jolly to Paris or the like, comprising the same group, would have had the same effect!
Being second generation to a holocaust survivor and third generation of a holocaust victim, I was made aware of the tragedy that befell our people from about age 10 (that's 50 years ago, yuk!) and, like many others, continue with (still) increasing incredulity, to read books, watch documentaries, speak to survivors, attend lectures etc., on the subject.
It's neither a a morbid nor a ghoulish fascination - it's probably some kind of a quest, and undoubtedly one that is bound to fail (though I'll never give up), to try and understand why and how what happened, actually did happen. There's also the inability to really grasp the enormity and the scale of the Nazi's plan to wipe out and totally eradicate a nation, our Jewish nation, of millions, ultimately (as far as Hitler and his thugs were concerned) throughout the world, never mind 'just' Europe.
The Jewish world now, and for always, are the living result of the 'fallout' caused by Hitler's significant, though thankfully ultimately failed, plan, and that is something that we and future generations must be kept aware of. We too have to understand ourselves, and pass on to our children, that for the world's nations, 6000000 is just a conveniently round number synonymous with 'the holocaust'; but for us, it is representative of the 6000000 plus, individual and precious souls lost, all of whom are deserving of our memory for all time.
As part of this whole process, I felt it was absolutely necessary I went on this short trip. Despite it predictably throwing up significantly more questions than answers, it proved to be an important and vital addition to my quest.
Any words to describe my thoughts and feelings about the two remarkable ladies who spoke to us before and after our trip, would sound like platitudes, such is their incredible effect, so I will resist the temptation. I hope though, that that says everything about them and their effect on me.
A footnote: From a personal perspective, in the same way as Rabbi Lieberman expressed a feeling of some kind of a common bond with the group, I too have found that the trip opened my eyes and mind to the fact that age and social groupings within our community, any Jewish community, should not serve as a barrier to open and cordial relationships between those groupings. Yes, I admit I was blind to that simple fact! Whilst, for example, 'street-kiddushim' are a great idea to try and achieve the same end, the fact is they are only of limited and short-term effectiveness. For me, at least, it has taken this shared experience to, if you like, 'see the light', probably for more reasons than I am able to appreciate thus far.
I strongly doubt a 2-day shul jolly to Paris or the like, comprising the same group, would have had the same effect!
