She was in a crowd
Of many others
Just like her,
Living a conscious
Nightmare...
Cadaverous eyes,
Smile beaten
From her face...
Her once milky skin
Now a dull gray...
Forcefully silenced
By monstrous robots,
Controlled by a madman!
“Arbeit Macht Frei”
The promise he made...
Work hard and obey
To be free again...
She did just that
So she could live!
Delicate girl
With so much to give...
She tried to stay strong
But grew weaker
By the day...
Starvation, mutilation
Extermination...
She just blew away.
© Leatherman 2011
The ending of this poem is especially tragic because your poem helps us get to know this girl. Thank you for this tribute to the millions of souls the world never got to know.
ReplyDeleteJudith, if you and John ever get a chance to go to The Holocaust Museum in Houston, you will never forget the faces of these tortured souls. The Nazi's took a lot of pictures of their dirty deeds and in one of the pictures a this young woman looks into the camera, over her shoulder. It touched me in a way that I was compelled to write for her.
ReplyDeleteI'm glad that I was able to convey what I saw and felt. Thank you for reading my poem and for your input.
I am in awe of how beautifully you are proceeding onward with some astonishing poetry. My favorite poet of the Holocaust was and always will be Nelly Sachs; listen to her words. She survived the nightmare and lived to write about it via her poetic gifts. You are reminding me more and more of her Brenda and I humbly applaud you. Wonderful, wonderful work you are doing. Stay Creative Friend!
ReplyDeleteJohn,
ReplyDeleteI've never read Nelly Sachs, I'm going to make it a point to do so. Thank you for the wonderful compliment!
Brenda