My last week in Israel has officially begun. Amid papers and tests and trying to get some last minute shwarma and ice cream runs in, I am beginning to wrap of the life I have created here in the Holy land. Today with my Holocaust class, I visited Yad Vashem. I had yet to visit the new History museum and found it much more moving, educational, interesting and well thought out than the one that was used previously. The museum is in the shape of a Triangle with cement walls inside. You begin at one end of the Triangular, long shaped building with a movie of the life of the Jews of Europe before the war began. We made our way down ( symbolically of course) into the rest of the museum where we weaved our way, with a guide, through the rise of Nazism in Europe, onto the creation of the Ghettos, passed the concentration camps and on through the partisans and the righteous among the nations. The most moving part of the museum was the last room of archives. This room was oval in shape- a high circular ceiling revealing pictures of names of those who we know were murdered in the holocaust ( about 3.2 mil. ) and opposite the ceiling a pit dug with water on the bottom. When we looked down into the pit we saw the reflection of those estimated 3 million names and pictures, representing all of those who perished in the Holocaust.
We continued our program at Yad Vashem ( mind you our professor works for Yad Vashem as the Editor in Chief of Yad Vashem Studies and other publications by Yad Vashem), with a talk with the Director of the department for the Righteous Among the Nations. She shared with us the measures taken to decide to who will be honored with the title of the Righteous among the nations. Following her presentation was the most moving of them all- and definitely tops the list of most moving experiences in Israel so far.
After a 5 min break, a vivacious 85 year old Israeli women made her way into the room we had been sitting in for what seemed like forever. She sat down at the table, and began to tell us about her life. Alice, or Elisheva in Israel, was born in Holland and spent her teenage years under the occupation of the Nazi’s. Her story was remarkable. Alice spent 3 and a half years in hiding, after convincing her father not to commit suicide and kill them as the Nazi were approaching Holland. She and her family bounced from 14 different people in Holland until one family finally took them in for the rest of the war. Alice spoke unbelievably eloquently and fondly about the family that saved and hide her family during the war. Three stories stick out to me in particular.
Alice and her family were among 9 Jews hidden by this devout Christian Family during the War. At a certain point, she explained, they became agitated with each other – as in most Holocaust hiding stories. The father of the household had a solution. He was extremely fond of the Old Testament, reveling in its symbols and hidden meanings. He made a rule that every day at 12 o clock the Jews would gather in the room they were hidden in, and he would read to them a passage from the Old Testament. After, he instructed them to learn, reread, discover and challenge all that they had read in this chapter. Later that night they were to present what they had learned to him. Alice explained that they would often stay up into the early hours of the morning studying Torah. The study of Torah kept these Hidden Jews busy and interested, excited and alive for the years they spent hidden from the outside. It was remarkable, outside of the fact that Torah literally saved their insanity, that it was all orchestrated by a non-Jew.
The second story Alice told about her hiding took place on Christmas. She told us that the man of the house asked for some time alone with his wife to pray on Christmas ( The hidden Jews usually were out with them during the night). Without a flinch, the Jews agreed and stayed in the backroom they were in during the day. They heard piano playing, and plates hitting the table. The lady of the house came to get them, revealing that they had a surprise for them. When they walked in they saw a table set with plates an forks and in the middle a Huge cake, surrounded by a wreath, dawning a lit menorah on top. It happened to be Hannukah that year the same day as Christmas. The man of the house played Hannukah music on the Piano, and Alice remarked Alice, most dramatically might I add, explained that they hadn’t seen bread for years let alone cake, and were stunned, shocked and mostly thankful for the celebration their saviors had prepared. This story to me highlights the true love and admiration the family had for the Jews they were hiding. To share their Christmas celebration with the Festival of Lights, for these Jews, shined, as Alice began to cry, a light in even the darkest moments in their life.
The last story is short but most moving. When the war ended and the Jews who had hidden with this family were gathering their things etc, the father of the house asked that they wait and file out of the house one in front of the other. As they left, the man of the house, who had scrambled to find the music to Hatikvah, played Hatikvah as each of them left from hiding. Alice remembered he had said to her, that this should be the song they march out to freedom with.
This remarkable story, told by such a lively, happy, gifted woman, gave me chills to last a life time. Her bravery and more over the commitment of the Non Jewish family who took her and her family in was overwhelmingly moving. After an afternoon of intensely depressing and saddening pictures, stories and truths, it was wonderful and inspiring to be told the story of true giborim (heros).
My week is long and pretty hectic. Shavuot is coming in this Thursday and then Shabbat. I have two finals on Sunday and then I’m off to the airport at 4 o’clock in the morning to catch an 805 flight to London-Newark and then finally Orlando.
I will try to write before I leave, but my words just might need to be saved for the plane ride home.
It is truly starting to hit me that my time here is coming to end, and im trying my hardest to think positively.
Until next time,
Sara
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