Polycarp's Holocaust Observations
By: The TAG Pest, Heather Valum
Dear World,
Over the thirteen years, between 1929 and 1942, that the Schneiders
lived in Herr Resch's apartment building, I saw them experience a lot of
pain and suffering, just because they were Jews! They weren't any
different than us, and people treated them horribly. I will now give
you a brief glimpse of what many Jews lives were like.
I mostly remember Friedrich, Herr and Frau Schneider's only child.
Even at a young age, Friedrich experienced much hatred and prejudice.
One day, Friedrich was playing in the snow. When he got ready to go
into the house, he tramped through my garden. Herr Resch threw open a
window in the house, yelled at Friedrich, and called him a "dirty
Jewboy." I was very appalled and angry with Herr Resch, but that was by
far, not the worst thing that happened to them.
A couple years later, as I was watching the sun set behind the house, a
mob of people came storming through my garden. They were yelling
hateful things about Jews and went pounding up the stairs to the
Schneider's apartment. I heard the breaking of glass and suddenly a
ripped up mattress came hurling out the window. Then the whole mob came
running back out arguing over some of the Schneider's belongings. Later
that night, I saw a doctor come up to the house. He went up to the
Schneider's apartment and stayed there for quite a while. Then awhile
later, he and Friedrich came out carrying Frau Schneider's body on a
mattress that had somehow missed being destroyed or dumped in my flower
garden. I found out later that one of the men in the mob had hit her
over the head. She died of internal bleeding and hemorrhaging of the
brain. Again, I put a lot of the blame on Herr Resch. He didn't do
anything to stop the mob, and he knew what they were doing to his
tenants.
Then there was a day a few years after Frau Schneider was murdered. I
was happily enjoying the afternoon when I noticed three police men
coming up the walk in my garden. Herr Resch greeted them at the door
and escorted them up to the Schneider's apartment. I had noticed that
the windows in their apartment had been boarded up earlier that year and
hadn't realized why until the police men came back out escorting two
men. One man was Herr Schneider and the other was a rabbi. They must
have been hiding the rabbi away from the horrid Nazis. I am guessing
they were taken to a concentration camp and are not alive today. And
again, I am mad at Herr Resch. After the police had gone, he went up to
the Schneider's apartment and began looking for valuables. I also heard
him say to another tenant, "Finally got rid of that irksome tenant!"
A couple of years before the end of the war, families in my area were
getting ready to go to the bomb shelters before an air raid. Friedrich,
who had been in hiding, had apparently tried to go in also. They must
have thrown him out because he came back to the house muttering,
"...wouldn't let me in, so afraid..." Just then an explosion shook the
ground. A piece of shrapnel came flying through the air and hit
Friedrich in the head. He fell down on the house's steps and died soon
after. When Herr Resch came back, he didn't even take his hat off. He
just kicked Friedrich away and went inside!
This is just what one of the Jewish families experienced. Think of all
the millions more that received the same treatment. Think of all the
families torn apart! Think of all the people killed! Why do people
treat each other like this? I just ask you to please be kind to people
who are different then you.
Sincerely,
Polycarp the lawn gnome