Yom HaShoah-- A Day to Remember

Today I had the privilege of taking a small group of students to the Day of Remembrance Ceremony at the State Capitol. It was a beautiful, warm Monday and they were kids who had chosen to accompany me, even though it meant leaving school at 11 and not returning home until nearly ten-- and spending nearly six hours in the CAR. One of my students had been asked to read the reflective writing that he had composed after the fall Holocaust conference. It was just a wonderful day filled with precious survivors, beautiful Hebrew prayers, old friends, and hope for the future.

As my student finished reading his piece about standing up to overcome indifference, he graciously thanked the generation of survivors for being willing to share their stories and promised to do his part to never forget. As he walked away from the podium with a giant smile, I watched a frail elderly survivor across the aisle lock eyes with him and nod a nod of respect and gratitude. They played a memorial slideshow toward the end, honoring survivors and liberators who have passed in the past year. I think there were between 10 and 15 of them. It is a scary thought to me that eventually there won't be any survivors to talk to and whose stories to hear first-hand. I like to think that the lady who was so enamored with my student felt that way because it blessed her heart to know that, even when she and the others filling those chairs are gone, their legacy will live on in the lives of these students who will battle indifference in our world.

At the very end, a rabbi read a prayer of benediction. I went up to her afterward to ask if it was a personal prayer or one that had been published because it spoke directly to my heart. She so kindly offered me her paper with the prayer (and her reflection) typed on it. Especially in the wake of the successful Run for Cover event, this prayer just contains an incredible message.

"A Prayer for Overcoming Indifference" 

by Rabbi Naomi Levy

"...Forgive us God, for remaining aloof while others are in need of our assistance.

Wake us up, God, ignite our passion, fill us with outrage. Remind each and every one of us that we are responsible for Your world. Don't allow us to stand idly by. Inspire us to act. Teach us to believe that we can repair some corner of the world.

When we despair, fill us with hope. When we doubt our strength, fill us with faith. When we are weary, renew our spirit. When we lose direction, show us the way back to meaning, back to compassion, back to You. Amen."

My absolute favorite line is "Teach us to believe that we can repair some corner of the world." Wow. Grant it, Lord. For if we all believe that we can do that, the world will no longer need much repair.

I love the symbolism represented in this picture of the elderly survivor's (probably) granddaughter lighting his candle for him because his hands were too weak. It depicts an actual passing of the torch of remembrance from generation to generation. Beautiful.

Sidenote: I'm not certain of this site because I didn't look around much, but I did like the post from today. Check it out if you have time.

Photos