The Holocaust - A Poem of Remembrance

The Holocaust - A Poem of Remembrance

A Poem by Tamara Beryl Latham
"

The human sacrifices associated with War.

"
The Holocaust - A Poem of Remembrance 


Skeletal frames,
whose beaten hearts
once bore
the heft of Hitler's war,

who knelt en masse
(in silence quaked)
with stifled groans
beneath the veil of death.

Through reddened
tear-stained eyes
they prayed in vain
for meager crumbs of hardened,
moldy, bread.

While Kristallnacht 
fueled raging fires
that burned old memories
and future dreams.

Death trains droned,
broken bones were stacked,
as clinking gold
removed from teeth
shattered the serenity of night.

Yet, through the horror
of sacrificial lambs
an image loomed
within a vapor cloud:
Rachel, weeping drops of blood,
"My children are no more."

And what remained
were piles of sable ash,
(unmarked by granite stones)
that filled the earthen pits.

Yet, I still weep
for what was flesh
reduced to bone and cinder -

for those with silent tongues
who turned away.

If tears were oceans
mine have formed them all. 

© 2019 Tamara Beryl Latham


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Reviews

love the last two lines...this is so full of tragedy and sadness. I feel Sylvia Plath's heart beating in this poem...something she might have written, but surely would have related to, as she dealt with her relationship with her father...
you have a strong voice.
j.

Posted 5 Years Ago


great tribute to such a horrifying time

Posted 5 Years Ago


 wordman

5 Years Ago

don`t remember what page,maybe 4
Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

I found it under search and commented.

Happy New Year.
 wordman

5 Years Ago

thank you ,,,,,,,,,,,,
Harsh, tragic, sad and painful. Reminders of suffering that should never have happened to anyone in life. Thank you for sharing a poem of this atrocity.

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

You're welcome, Dawn. I wish I didn't have to write on this painful subject.

Yet, it.. read more
Such powerful words... such a painful aching... such horrendous loss that cannot be retrieved... And somehow the hate still lives.. the voice of it creeps through the barren places. I cannot fathom these oceans of tears... cannot believe more are being shed... How can it still be, this fire that never ends... these beautiful lives no more... this Holocaust?

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Yes, you speak truth and even today, in this century, in this country (the U.S.) these atrocities ar.. read more
An owl on the moon

5 Years Ago

Ah, I had just read this study yesterday... so fascinating... yes... connecting us all as one... all.. read more
Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

It's amazing to me that anyone could look at the wonders of this world and decide it originated by a.. read more
My Polish God father was in Auschwitz. Visited the camp when I was 7 and was not allowed to go around it so was placed in a room with other children while my parents and god father looked around. Being the only English kid there and having all the other kids talking to me in a language I couldn't understand scared me. Revisited about 20 years ago and was stunned by the silence..not a bird could be heard. Really liked this poem (I did one on a bit like it for a competition) it didn't get placed but I still like it. Thanks for sharing. These crimes must never be forgotten

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Your story is, indeed, a sad one. What an eerie feeling that not one bird chirped in that area and .. read more
My great grandmother was a Holocaust survivor. Personally, I find this type of material scary. Not creepy, but absolutely frightening.
You just have to understand two things about this, ONE you have written an excellent poem here, my lady. TWO everything that happened to our people had to happen and could not have happened any other way.
Try not to feel to sad, we still endure. It was clandestine.

Excellent job, Tamara, as always.

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Thank you Wesley. Yes, you are correct. What happened is scary, mainly because there is nothing pr.. read more
harsh but beautifully said ... thank you for educating me about "Crystal Night" ..i had not learned of that term and meaning before ... i am presently reading the book "All But My Life" by Gerda Weismann ... a holocaust survivor ... i like the way the form is ...a mix of 4 and 5 lines per verse that trails to couplets in closing ... my reading kind so slows and it allows the points to sink solidly in ..i also like the straight forward language ... the subject isn't flowery ... "sable ash" really hits me hard ... strong closing says i! and using Rachel of the Old Testament is perfect ... the focus isn't about revenge or hate ...but on the suffering .... the weeping ... universal but brought down to one woman's tears to fill the oceans .. love your poem .. its a keeper and tribute of remembrance ...
E.

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Thank you so much Einstein Noodle. Love your name. I appreciate you having taken the time to read .. read more
Einstein Noodle

5 Years Ago

thanks for the tip, Tamara! i will have to do that ... 101 books ... wow! you have a keen interest d.. read more
Many races were effected by the German need to erase races. Over a million Gypsies were killed also. The sad part is. Since WW2. Many nations did the same. Today Israel is trying is trying to erase a great people. Saudi Arabia is destroying her neighbor. Syria and the Christians in Iraq. Your poem powerful and true. I wish men would learn. Every life had value. New world of today. More cold-blooded. Mass murder and few are complaining. I met two death camp survivors and they wanted peace, not revenge. Thank you Tamara for sharing your powerful words.
Coyote

Posted 5 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Coyote, what you have stated is true concerning other countries and their desire to destroy their en.. read more
Coyote Poetry

5 Years Ago

You are right. If we forget the past. It is repeated. This is sad.
Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Sad, but unfortunately true.
these words are deserving of at least six million hits and a candle lit for every one of them..... Neville

Posted 5 Years Ago


1 of 1 people found this review constructive.

Neville

5 Years Ago

yes.. to call it an absolute disgrace would be nothing but an understatement.. thank you for craftin.. read more
Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

You're welcome, Neville. I've read so many personal accounts of the Holocaust, way over 100, so I f.. read more
Neville

5 Years Ago

no one is likely to argue with you....
Always amazes me that people deny the Holocaust.
Viktor Frankl tells all in his books.
But even today the enormity of the death camps beggers belief.
A stain on civilization.


Posted 6 Years Ago


Tamara Beryl Latham

5 Years Ago

Thank you for reading and offering feedback.

I don't really believe people deny the h.. read more

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953 Views
19 Reviews
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Added on September 26, 2018
Last Updated on September 28, 2019
Tags: death, horror, bias, prejudice

Author

Tamara Beryl Latham
Tamara Beryl Latham

Brentwood, TN



About
Retired Research and Development Chemist - Pharmaceuticals. "Truth, like light, is often slanted." copyright, Tamara B. Latham more..

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