The journey to Poland is a very important and emotional one. Even for someone who doesn't have any connection to anyone who was personally affected by World War II, it is still a very hard and emotional experience.
For someone like me who's family was in the Middle East at the time of the Holocaust, I thought it would just be a trip to remember. It would be nothing more than an educational experience because I don't have family (or friends that have family) who died in the Holocaust. In preparation for Poland, we watched many movies on the Holocaust, learned about how the war progressed, and talked about what we think we will experience when we get to Poland. We also went to Yad Vashem, the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem, a couple days before we left. I felt very prepared until we watched The Pianist. I felt my legs shaking throughout the whole movie and I couldn't keep myself together. I was worried that if I felt like this during a movie, then how would I react to seeing the things in real life.
When we got to Poland we immediately started with all the death and depressing stuff. I was surprised to know that I wasn't really emotionally effected by all of it. I felt perfectly fine. I understood that all the things that happened during the Holocaust were terrible for the Jewish people, but there is no reason crying about things that are in the past. We need to focus on the present and how we prevent these things from happening in the future. While also grieving for the people who died, we should take the Holocaust as a learning experience to prevent anything like this from happening again.
I agree with a lot of the point you have made. I to got more nervous watching the movie the Pianist then when I was physically standing at the concentration camp. But I disagree with the part where you said, “ There is no reason to cry about things that are in the past. We need to focus on the present and how we prevent these things from happening in the future.” I disagree because if you look at the event of the holocaust with out emotion you will loss the message and meaning behind the terrible event that took place, and you will forget that these were people like you and I.
ReplyDeleteYou raise an interesting point. While I agree that it is pointless to cry over spilt milk - or in this case unfixable history - I know that sometimes we can't help it. Our emotions are governed by our hearts as much as our heads, and sometimes our hearts refuse to listen to the reasoning presented by our heads. Therefore, even though it isn't logical, it's still a clear reaction. At the same time though, the only time I remember crying in Poland (aside from when I found out my great grandfather passed) was when we were at Majdanek. It did feel horrible, knowing that they were all people just like you and me, but it was not something that made me cry. Perhaps that is because I, like you, didn't have any relatives in the Shoah, or perhaps it's just who I am.
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