Deserving Celebration

A Thousand Words / June 19, 2019

Terezĺn: a place overwrought with both exhausted and fresh emotion. Too much history to note lies within its boundaries.

Yesterday, our program had the privilege of hearing from Doriz Grozdanovičová, who was only 16 years old when her and her family were sent to Terezĺn concentration camp in 1942. She spoke to us about the conditions and statistics, but also about the ways in which her personal experience differed from many of the other Jews of that time. Her years of shepherding appeared to be the greatest blessing in the grand scheme of things and we got to witness that truth today.

Walking through the halls of the exhibit added weight to each word she had expressed a day prior. This picture was made after our group took a tour through the Small Fortress, the sight which served as the prison of the Prague Gestapo. Here, 32,000 men and women passed through the gates and endured fates of slave labour, poor hygienic care, malnourishment, and death by mass shootings and hangings.

Getting the chance to escape the boundaries of the camp walls was freeing even for me. We were given a few minutes to explore and look for picture opportunities and that’s when I stumbled into this breathtaking frame. Rows and rows of lively roses occupied the space around a towering cross, draped by a crown of thorns. Behind the field was the Star of David, peaking right around the cross and over the colorful petals. This was my favorite part of Terezĺn, not just because it was visually the most appealing, but because it felt less like a reason for mourning and more like an encouragement for celebration. I think that admitting the weight of this tragic part of history is more than necessary, but I also believe that there is so much to celebrate in the learning and honoring process of it all. I think that the Jews and those who worked in their favor would hope to be commemorated for their bravery, not sympathized for because of the harsh conditions and horror that they faced. This little garden of hope did just that.