Edited by Zvi
Bacharach
Translated by Batsheva Pomerantz
"These are my last words…” is the opening sentence found
over and over again in this unique volume of hand written letters
authored by those about to be killed during the Holocaust. These
are the actual letters found over the last 60 years, hoarded by
their families and friends, and ultimately collected by Yad Vashem,
the major Holocaust Museum in Israel. These last letters were
sent from the ghettos, hidden in the cattle cars and train stations,
and smuggled out of the Concentration Camps. They reveal the hope
and aspirations of the doomed and express the concern these martyrs
had for their loved ones, and oftentimes, the belief that their
own spiritual continuity lay in their children’s survival. Includes
a geographical index of where the letters were found and/or sent
from.
Dear Children,
Remember, both of you, what Amalek [the Nazis] has done to us.
Remember this and don’t forget it your whole lives, and pass this
on as a sacred will to the next generations. The Germans killed,
slaughtered, and murdered us calmly and in tranquility. I saw
them and I stood among them when they sent many thousands of men
and women, infants and babies to be killed. How are they then
able to eat with appetite their morning butterbrod, while teasing
and mocking our martyrs? I saw them when they came back from the
vale of murder; filthy with the blood of our beloved ones from
their feet to the top of their heads. I am writing at a time,
when many people are broken, many widows and orphans, naked and
hungry, are stationed at my door requesting our help. My strength
wanes. I am naked and empty with no words in my language. For
a moment, I close my eyes and picture the two of you standing
before me. I hereby hug and kiss you, and I tell you until my
last breath that I am your loving father.
|
