Design for ‘Meine Krone in der Asche’, the German version of my story, published by `fontis Verlag
Today is day 16 since the Hamas/Israel war began.
Far away, here in Phoenix I check the latest news, scrolling
past the gut-wrenching photographs of wounded, dying and dead people, the rubble, the explosions, the faces of hostages, children, old people, trying somehow to engage,
I search for individual stories.
Roger Cohen writes in the NY Times:
A family mourning the death of Awad Darawshe, a 23 years old, Palestinian Israeli paramedic, assigned to take care of routine medical emergencies at an Israeli music festival, shot under the stage by Hamas.
Awad was one of 260 killed.
A family mourns | Photo by Amit Elkayam for The New York Times
Charlotte Hauptmann, Holocaust Survivor
Charlotte Hauptmann, Holocaust Survivor | Photo by Elizabeth Weinberg for CNN
Charlotte Hauptmann is 84 years old. She was a toddler in 1944 when she survived a round up of Jews because Italian villagers rescued her from German invaders.
When Hamas crossed the border, Charlotte was visiting Jerusalem and she fled a second time. With her daughter she boarded the next plane back to California.
Source: WSILTV.com (CNN)
Street graffiti, Colombia | Image Source: ADL
Meanwhile ADL.org reports Global Antisemitic Incidents from Austria, Germany, France, UK, Spain, Poland, Chile, Canada, Tunisia, Turkey, Holland, Italy, Switzerland, Colombia, Portugal, Australia.
One example, the Israeli flag is torn down from the main synagogue, the Vienna City Temple.
And then this lands in my inbox…
Flyer from Gemünd sent by Georg Toporowsky
An invitation to the Weg der Erinnerung (Way of Remembrance) on 9th November 2023, in Gemünd marking the 85th Anniversary of Reichspogromnacht when synagogues all over German territories were torched and Jewish businesses vandalized.
The carefully designed illustration outlines the former synagogue fronted by the Stolpersteine laid for the murdered Jewish citizens, including my mother, father, uncle and childhood friend.
Who is Georg Toporowsky?
Georg leads a team at nearby Vogelsang, Hitler’s former castle, desiring to change hearts and remember the past. He brought a group together for the laying of Stolpersteine in Gemünd, Georg is a good friend and a noble human being.
Last year with Georg in Gemünd
Hanna, thank you for sharing your words of these individuals and how they are tied together. I’m thankful for your life and your voice during these very dark days. May the Lord amplify your voice, in written and spoken words, and the message of your life, to all who need to hear it. Tears run down my face as I’m writing this wanting to express my love and support for the Jewish and Israeli people around the globe…we are weeping with you.
Dear Rebecca, I am so blessed and comforted by your words and prayers for my people and for me….coming from your heart