Kristallnacht+III

" My Memories of That Night" by, P. Kerman
 * Assignment:**

Chards of glass upon the ground, my life broken beyond repair, The noise of hate everywhere... Death and fear my only visitors. How can I recover from that scare? Will I ever dare to go outside? Will my life ever be normal again? My Temple burned,my Torah gone, my faith orphaned that night. How can I find the will to live? Will my prayers ever have meaning again? Will you help me? Please... To Do... Explain what "my faith orphaned that night means". With a partner or by yourself, try to answer the questions stated in the poem. You and a partner are to create a collage/ mural depicting the events of Kristallnacht. (Next week) Also for today, you and one other person can create an underground radio broadcast that was aired the night after Nov.9th (Kristallnacht) due today... presented to the class.Later we can record them and play them at the graduation.


 * Student Responses: (Below are a few selected responses, to see all of the responses please click on the "Discussion tab" above.)

Response by Maddie Knight**

A shard of glass dug deeper into my forearm, and I tried hard not cry out. Tears welled in my eyes. And I silently screamed in desperation. Though there were hundreds of people were around me, I felt alone. As I slowly stood, the crunch of glass breaking was heard from under my barefoot. Crimson blood spilled onto the black pavement. The tears spilled and I couldn't hold back my cries. Though i lay on the street sobbing, no one heard. Or, rather, no one understood. No one understood me. The ironic thing about life is that big things happen when you least expect them, and sad things happen only when you truly feel content and happy. Yesterday, for the first time in life, I did feel understood. I didn't feel alone. Shards of glass were not digging into various parts of my flesh. Yesterday was the best day of my life, and now it was gone, a mere memory. I know it's a cliche, but yesterday I felt as if I was walking on a cloud. Being a person of simple idealistics, yesterday might not have seemed so fantastic to someone who doesn't view the world as simply as me, but it was my day. In the beggining of the day, I woke up, and for the first time, I wasn't tired. There weren't dark circles under my eyes; there wasn't a half-asleep ora about me. At school, I finished all my homework before I got home, and received a stellar grade on my weekly speller. When I got home, we had company, and Mother prepared a delicious meal for supper. AFter our feast, Father surprised me by taking me to a fabulous play. After the play, we went to an ice cream parlor and Father bought me a lovely sundae with bananas, cherries, caramel, chocolate, and colored sprinkles. As I went to bed, reflecting on the day's events, I smiled as I drifted into my dream world, and dreamt about ponies and butterflies. But, alas, that was yesterday, and today was today. Today was different. Today was terrible. All the fantastic events of yesterday were forgotten. Blood was drying on my pale skin, and I felt weak. Standing up was nightmare, and walking was simply impossible. Talking was not an option. I lay there on the damp road. Dark spots of blood could be seen clearly. I could hear my family calling my name, and I could feel the relief washing through me knowing that they were alive. And though I was so relieved and happy, I could not respond. For ages, I could hear my mother's panicked voice, and for ages, I could hear my little sister crying and screaming my name, and, for ages, I didn't respond, because I physically could not speak. After a time, they stopped calling, and all I could hear was sobbing. "Come honey, she isn't here," I heard my father say in a choked voice. They weren't coming back for me. My family abandoned me. I had nothing left. I lay back, and my head hit the pavement. I heard ringing in my ears as the the back of my head hit the cold, wet road. I closed my eyes, it was all over.


 * Response by Dan Wagner**

1.) It think that "my religon orphaned" means that we no longer take care of our religon and that it is being taken care of by someone or thing else.

2.) I can recover from that terrible scare by praying to g-d that something like this never happens again. After a while, I know I personally will regain my confidence and be able to recover.

3.) To answer the question will I ever go outside again, I say, "yes." But it will take a while. I will wait until I am confident and have faith in my peers and surroundings. When that happens I will be able to back outside.

4.) Will my life ever be normal again?? Probably not. But that doesn't mean I can't try. I will always have that memory of Kristallnach, but I can do everything I can to not have that change my life.

5.) I can find the will to live by moving on and thinking positively. If I just put my mind into something else and be confident, then I can move on.

6.) Of course my prayers will be answered again. You can never give up your faith in g-d. Just because one thing didn't go well for you doesn't mean you can't give up.