Day 2 - Poland - Lara
We spent our first full day of Poland in Warsaw and it was such a powerful way to start our IST journey.
We woke up bright and early to drive to Tykocin, a small village, where we visited their local Synagogue. Here, we prayed Shacharit, followed by singing and dancing. This was an incredible experience as we filled the empty shule with life and passion, just as our ancestors would have. Personally, I felt overcome with pride as we had such an incredible opportunity to walk in the footsteps of our people and this emotional connection continued as we travelled through the streets of what used to be a city that was populated by 2500 Jews. We were taught about the lives of the Jews who lived there and how their lives were infused with Judaism, Torah and learning.
We then continued this journey in absolute silence on our busses as we followed the footsteps of the Jews that were taken from this small town to the Lopuchova forest. As we got off the bus and walked through the trees, I couldn’t help but put myself in the shoes of the 2500 mothers, fathers and children who were unknowingly taken to their death. Every 40 minutes another small truck would come with a collection of children who had no idea of what was yet to come. Before embarking on this journey, we were told to look at the trees and consider all they have seen in the forest, and looking at the hundreds trees, I saw the hundreds of children, my age, that were murdered beside these trees that still stand tall, yet silent, unable to tell their story. We heard from one of our guides, Mark, as well as Rabbi Avichai, who moved us, some of us to tears, as they shared their personal connections to the forest and what it meant to them. This was an emotional experience as Mark told us the story of his son Matanel who was killed in Israel and the important of remembrance, and Rabbi Avichai shared powerful insights. Consequently, I was able to picture one individual, one child who lay naked beside other bodies that was sentenced to death, simply because they were Jewish. After walking around the three pits that held 2500 bodies and lighting memorial candles, we walked silently out the forest. After we were out of the forest one of my peers that was overcome with emotions pointed out that these children never got to walk out the forest - this made me realise how blessed I am and how disgusted I feel at how inhumane people can be.
After lunch, we had a long drive to Kotzk. On this bus ride, my bus, bus 4 (the superior bus) sang Hebrew songs together and bonded as a group. I found this so special, especially after the hard morning we had, as I felt such pride in the strength and unity of the Jewish people today, in 2019. This bus ride took us to the gravestone of the Kotzker Rebbe. Amazingly, this Rebbe was the great great grandfather of one of the IST participants. Here, after listening to a guide share some of the teachings of the Rebbe, we said Tehillim, danced and then sang some more. This feeling of pride once again consumed me as I felt that although we, as the Jewish people may have been through the worst torture possible during the Shoah, we can not be destroyed and will forever stand tall.
I hope to take with me for the rest of the trip these ideas and feelings that I felt today. The trees that are surrounding us throughout the trip will continue to represent everything the Jews have gone through and suffered, however, it also represents the strength and unity of the Jews today. I am blessed to be a part of this strong religion that can never be defeated.
