A Holocaust Victim's Point Of View | Teen Ink

A Holocaust Victim's Point Of View

March 21, 2010
By Jaquie BRONZE, West Palm Beach, Florida
Jaquie BRONZE, West Palm Beach, Florida
3 articles 0 photos 407 comments

Favorite Quote:
This is certainly one of my favorites: "I will become even more undignified than this, and I will be humiliated in my own eyes." -2 Samuel 6:22


I wear the Star of David
Strung upon a golden chain
Draped around my neck in pride
Yet they see it as a stain

They cannot see my heart
For what it truly is
Cannot Hitler hear the sound,
Beat-beating just as his?

Like a bullet piercing through my skin,
Blood pouring from the shot,
Like a glass of red, red wine,
-Shattered on the Kristallnacht.

My heart is broken by the torment,
By the scorn and the abuse,
Fast upon my heels
Hitler’s hounds have been set loose.

All my people are condemned
My hopes and dreams forgotten
In my sight I see my end
My beliefs, they have deemed rotten

There is no use in fighting
Breathe in, breathe out. Surrender
Nothing can protect you
No guard or defender

Swing lower now sweet chariot
From the Ghetto make a prison break
I’ve been giving oh, so much
What more have they to take?

They took me from my family
They took me from my home
It seems they’ve taken everything
My religion’s all I own

I am up at dawn
And lashed till dark
My screams drown out
The angels hark

As they’d visit us
Each tortured night
The lucky ones go
Into the only light

That shines on us
Where the Nazis choose
To exterminate all
Of the living Jews

That’s why this is happening
That’s why we breathe this foul air
That’s why my people suffer
My religion makes my life unfair

So what if I think differently?
What if my eyes are brown not bluish?
Look at who I was before
I was so much more than Jewish

I was a daughter and a sister
A lover and a friend
Too soon my family saw the grave
And put these titles to an end

I fear this hell cannot be blessed
I fear this cell is a lifelong friend
Soon no more beats inside my chest
Can you now hear its screeching end?

Not the first and not the last
More Jewish and gypsy souls will pass
Within this place they’ve made for death
Inside this room they’ve filled with gas

If you were to listen at the door
You’d hear the people say a prayer
“Sweet death please come more swiftly!”
Whispered into poisoned air . . .

What has this horror taught me?
-That there is nothing more to learn
When your heart is slowly stopped,
And your body left to burn.


The author's comments:
I wrote this after reading Anne Frank for the first time. I'm not Jewish myself but I still took hold of the inspiration given to write this piece. I hope you enjoy it. God bless!

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This article has 41 comments.


on Oct. 9 2012 at 7:58 am
RandomPoet SILVER, Apopka, Florida
9 articles 0 photos 36 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Life is like a box of chocolates you never know what your gonna get&quot;Forrest Gump<br /> &quot;Never say goodbye, because goodbye means going away and going away means for getting&quot;Peterpan

I would like to say that this peom is inspiring and deep. I remember reading about the holocaust and watching the play of Anne rank in the 8th grade. I felt as if i could  imangine the whole poem. You are an Amazing writer and i hope eveyone will like this poem and be amazed by what they have read like I have.

on Sep. 20 2012 at 11:48 am
the-tears-im-crying-dont-deserve-you PLATINUM, Batesville, Indiana
32 articles 0 photos 38 comments

Favorite Quote:
love comes and goes,<br /> just like the watter flows

I thank you for you have the currage to say what needs to be said about our religion!

on Sep. 17 2012 at 10:44 am
garshongjasmine SILVER, Accra, Other
7 articles 0 photos 27 comments

Favorite Quote:
happiness resides not in possesions, and not in gold, the feeling of happiness dwells in the soul<br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> <br /> -democritus

hauntilngly beautiful!!!.. i was recently  reading a book about the holocaust and this made it feel  more personal and real... i pray nothing like this ever happens again...

on Sep. 17 2012 at 3:57 am
BlueSunset BRONZE, Barcelona, Other
3 articles 0 photos 79 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Be who you are and say what you feel, because those who mind don&#039;t matter and those who matter don&#039;t mind&quot;- Dr. Seuss

Absolutely amazing poem, gobsmacked with the vocabulary used and the soft way you've written it. The way you write it is as though you were Anne, which is astonishing because quite a few writers can't enter the mind of a famous person and write as though they were them. Well done! x

DonQuixote said...
on Sep. 15 2012 at 2:44 pm
DonQuixote, Shortstop, Other
0 articles 0 photos 2 comments
This poem is quite a breath-taker. Though you never lived through the Holocaust, I can nearly say that as I was reading this poem, I believed you were actually a part of the living Holocaust, during the time of its happening.. Congratulations on a work well done. God Bless, -Don

Aderes47 GOLD said...
on Sep. 11 2012 at 7:11 pm
Aderes47 GOLD, Cambridge, Massachusetts
11 articles 0 photos 897 comments

Favorite Quote:
You will find as you look back upon your life that the moments when you have truly lived are the moments when you have done things in the spirit of love. <br /> Henry Drummond

This is a great poem! You capture very well the essence of the horror of the holocaust! It was also written very well. Simple yet elegant. Even though I am Muslim and not Jewish, I have great sympathy for the victims of the holocaust. Keep writing!

on Sep. 7 2012 at 7:22 pm
LifeWrite PLATINUM, Westfield, New Jersey
44 articles 14 photos 53 comments
I don't even know what to say. That was unbelievable. When I clicked on it I didn't expect to be very impressed, but this really resonated with me and I'm very touched. I will never truly understand what it was like to be a holocaust victim, but this made me feel something deep. Have you seen the movie Schindler's List? It is another incredible portrayal of a hero during that time period.

on Sep. 7 2012 at 11:39 am
This was ABSOLUTELY AMAZING!!! I felt the emotion with every word.

on Sep. 2 2012 at 9:42 pm
BloglessBlogger GOLD, Somerset, California
10 articles 1 photo 67 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Don&#039;t let the fear of striking out keep keep you from playing the game.&quot;

WOW! I don't know what to say... It was beautiful, heartwrenching, and true. So many people died in those camps... If they did manage to survive the have scars, tattoos, and stories fro us to remember that horrendous time by. Some people claim the Holocaust is a hoax, how do you not understand this? Children were killed every day and parents were seperated from their families. So many people lost their lives... :-(

on Sep. 2 2012 at 1:03 pm
Nadds_67 SILVER, Rochester, New York
6 articles 0 photos 11 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Trust in the Lord with all your heart and lean not on your own understanding,in all your ways submit to him, and He will make your paths straight&quot;- Proverbs 3:5-6

This poem was great!!! I loved everything about it, especially the rhyme! I love how the poem expresses alot of emotion, keep up the great work! I would love to read more from you, God bless!

on Aug. 26 2012 at 3:59 pm
lzcelloplayer BRONZE, Wayland, Massachusetts
2 articles 0 photos 31 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;It seems that we all look at Nature too much, and live with her too little.&quot; ~ Oscar Wilde

Wow! This poem really blew me away. I think you should definitely continue to write poetry because you really are able to evoke emotion very well through your writing. I also loved the rhythm and the flow of the poem. Keep up the good work! :D 

on Aug. 12 2012 at 10:46 am
katieyoung18 PLATINUM, Scottsboro, Alabama
33 articles 55 photos 14 comments

Favorite Quote:
dont let the fear of striking out keep you from playing the game.

This is a great poem it protrayed everything with such detail it pulled me in and made me feel like I was hurting the same way..keep writing sruff like this your great. :)

abbadoo said...
on Aug. 7 2012 at 11:10 pm
abbadoo, Clinton, South Carolina
0 articles 0 photos 11 comments
Your poem conveyed a threshold of tearing emotions. I sincerely enjoyed reading it, not only because the Holocaust is such an intriguing time, but because you wrote it so well. Immense thanks for sharing your poem! 

KatsK DIAMOND said...
on Jul. 25 2012 at 5:47 pm
KatsK DIAMOND, Saint Paul, Minnesota
57 articles 0 photos 301 comments

Favorite Quote:
Being inexhaustible, life and nature are a constant stimulus for a creative mind.<br /> ~Hans Hofmann<br /> You must stay drunk on writing so reality cannot destroy you.<br /> ~Ray Bradbury

This was really, really good. All of it was amazing, really. You captured it perfectly.

on May. 17 2012 at 5:42 pm
fictitious-quandary GOLD, Orlando, Florida
18 articles 5 photos 83 comments

Favorite Quote:
Knowing is not enough; we must apply.<br /> Willing is not enough; we must do.<br /> Johann Wolfgang von Goethe<br /> <br /> &quot;Whether you think you can or you think you can&#039;t, you&#039;re right&quot;<br /> - Henry Ford

This is probably the best poem on this site. It is an amazing pertrayal of what the victims went through. 

Lizette SILVER said...
on Mar. 19 2012 at 3:33 pm
Lizette SILVER, Delphos, Ohio
5 articles 0 photos 47 comments

Favorite Quote:
Everyone is entitled to be stupid. But some people abuse the privlidge!

that was positivly amazing!  you really took hold of some deep feelings there.  great job!  i really like how you developed the poem and it really told a story...keep it up!!

on Feb. 27 2012 at 1:28 pm
jonny123 BRONZE, Price, Texas
4 articles 0 photos 1 comment

Favorite Quote:
don&#039;t fire until fired upon

that was truly amazing ive never truly thought of the holocaust through that perspective for ive been scared of what id have found thank you.

on Aug. 3 2010 at 3:55 pm
writingchick GOLD, Huntington, Indiana
11 articles 0 photos 127 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;Faith is taking another step without seeing the entire staircase.&quot;

I cannot descirbe how incredibly amazing this was. I mean it was marvelous, fantastic, awesome, great and more. Not many (well really no) writing can make me tear up but this did. very very very very good :)

Aidyl BRONZE said...
on Aug. 3 2010 at 1:36 pm
Aidyl BRONZE, Oshawa, Other
4 articles 0 photos 90 comments

Favorite Quote:
&quot;If you want a friend be a friend.&quot;<br /> <br /> -Poster<br /> <br /> <br /> &quot;That&#039;s cool. Hey you know what&#039;s even cooler than triceratops? Every other dinosaur that ever existed!&quot;<br /> -Dwight Schrute The Office

This is amazing! It's really easy to read and it expresses everything clearly, I love the last couple lines, they're beautiful.

Pillow BRONZE said...
on Jul. 15 2010 at 12:34 am
Pillow BRONZE, Spokane, Washington
1 article 5 photos 300 comments

Favorite Quote:
Nothing says oops like a wall of flame.

This is an amazing poem. It's like a memoir from WW2, Truly. I've done alot of research on it all through school and other things and you really see all of the pain of the holocaust in your poem. :)