Shalom

Not too ago I was watching a documentary about Israel and my curiosity was peaked when they spoke of Yom HaShoah, also known as Holocaust Remembrance Day.  What I found so amazing about it, is that on that day in Israel, at 10:00 in the morning a siren sounds.  At that time, everything stops.  People driving in their cars stop and get out to stand next to their cars.  Everyone stands, and for two minutes they reflect on the death of six million of their people.  I was amazed, as even here in the United States, it is hard to get people to be quiet for a moment of silence, let alone a whole country doing it for two minutes.

In 2014, the date for Yom HaShoah was April 28th, which was yesterday.  I thought about it in the morning before work, and then again when I got home.  To do my own honoring of the day, I watched a documentary about a school in Tennessee and how they had chosen to teach about diversity.  Since the community is predominantly white and Christian, they chose the Holocaust because the Jewish people were very far removed from most of the people they knew.  They started by learning about the history of what happened, but were stumped by one question.  What does six million look like?  They could not wrap their minds around the astounding number of Jews murdered.  So they decided to collect paperclips to get a sense of what that might look like.  The project lasted a couple of years, and not only did the students learn, but even some of the adults.  I was moved to hear an assistant principal speak of how the project had opened his eyes to his own prejudices.  It was a wonderful story of people coming together, of survivors telling their stories,  of children genuinely learning and how an entire community worked together to set up their own memorial site.  When all was said and done, they had collected in the neighborhood of twenty nine million paper clips.  They had obtained a true German railcar, and brought it to Tennessee to house their collection and in doing so gave people a way to honor family and friends through each tiny paperclip.  

As I watched, I wondered about the unity that the siren brings.  Everyone of one accord, putting something bigger than themselves first.  While it did not go into the details, I was amazed by what this school in Tennessee was able to accomplish.  Really?  They brought a rail car from Germany!  That could not have been cheap, but people were so invested in the project that they were compelled to complete it and do it to the best of their abilities.  When they were finished, the school decided to not only honor the six million Jewish dead, but also the additional estimated five million killed by the Nazi's.  This was made up of various groups of people, including those with disabilities, homosexuals, gypsies, Polish and Soviet civilians and Soviet prisoner's of war.

I pray that today, those who remembered their dead are comforted.  I also ask God to continue to open our eyes and hearts, just like He did in this little town in Tennessee.