Reflections on Miriam

Miriam is a child survivor of the Holocaust. She does not remember what she saw or how she felt during her escape from Nazi persecution. Yet, as she sat with us and told us her story, it was evident there was a sense of sadness about her that came from her Holocaust experience, even though she has no memory of it.

This leads me to believe that no matter how a person is affected by the Holocaust-- whether it is direct, indirect, through family, through friends, in memory, or not in memory, the Holocaust will always be a significant event that changed their lives forever. For those affected by the terrifying event, the Holocaust would have somehow influenced their lives in some way. Holocaust survivors now-- adult or child, with memory of the event or not-- will always feel a sense of trauma and fear because things now wouldn't be the way they are if the Holocaust had not happened.

Those like myself who were not there will never understand.

Genevieve points out a phrase in one of her blog entries: "If one dies it is a tragedy, if thousands die it is a statistic". Miriam is just one out of many victims of the Holocaust, but I will always remember her story forever.