"Arbeit Macht Frei"

“Arbeit Macht Frei” “Work will set you free” the first words above my head when walking into the concentration camp. Every book we read about the Holocaust informs us about the deaths and fear of the Jews in Europe. The books describe the setting, how they died, who died and their story. We try to relate to the book, by feeling sorry for those that have been through the Holocaust. But there is no book that explains how you will feel when you personally, enter the camp. No book can ever compare to the emotions and reactions many people experienced today. Imagine walking into a gate centered community, that has huge houses and a big white fence surrounding it. Only, this place has huge abandoned buildings and there is no fence, it is barbed wires surrounding the community. The setting is cold, the concrete and steps are unbelievably steep from all that have walked it. The worst part is, when the victims were cremated, after running out of storage room for the ashes, these ashes were thrown everywhere. Imagine walking these step roads knowing you could be walking on someone’s ashes? It amazes me after all these years how much people truly care and remember the Holocaust. There were so many people waiting for a tour outside the camp.

     For many the visit is tear-jerking, heartbreaking, and terrifying. The moment I walked through the gates I could feel the chills from all the spirits haunted there. We saw everything from the bunkers to what they ate to where they were cremated. The idea that someone could produce this idea in their mind of wiping out a whole group of people is horrifying.  The pictures of children suffering from starvation, seeing their actual valuables left behind (shoes and combs) and seeing the hair of many that was cut off to make into a bed sheet made the hairs on my neck stand up. In the gas chambers and bunkers, the rooms were cold and depressing. How could anyone dream of these horrible things?

       The last building in Auschwitz I is called “Szoa Shoah.” And right before you walk out, there is a huge book. Think of the movie Shrek, how it starts off with a huge, thick animated textbook “Once upon a time.” This book is in the center of the floor with pages and pages of over 40,000 holocaust names. The book contains their names, birthday, death date and where they died, in alphabetical order. I do believe that people with family background that lived through that holocaust, come and visit. I do believe that they search to see if their loved ones are still alive or want to know what happened to them. So this book gives many both a sense of hope and peace at heart.

                      By: Jordan Galindo