The event is approaching....

All our work, our thoughts and preparations, will come to the test. And, in the imminence of the event, I have been thinking: what is it that I hope for this event?

I hope that we may teach our audience something. I hope that we will not stutter, or be left with awkward silences, or, on the other hand, raving, quarreling audience members. I hope the adults will appreciate our work, realize that we are capable of pulling such a thing off.

I hope all these things. But even if they do come to pass, I wouldn't mind. What matters most, I think, is doing something that will make a difference in the community, in the world. And, in this event, that is precisely what we are doing. We are shaping and contributing to humanity and the world.

Milton Reynolds

Milton Reynolds came to our class to teach us how to manage good conversations in our groups during our event. We were taught what to expect in these groups and then taught how to deal with. One that caught me surprise was that if an argument rises up, we could either make it like a group activity (ask people to take sides) or ask for more voices (stop the argument).

Holocaust Paintings

On Monday we studied six paintings created by Holocaust survivor Samuel Bak. I found it remarkable that he had his first art exhibition when he was only about nine years old and trapped in a Jewish ghetto. The memories of the Holocaust are very much apparent in his haunting images of expressionless, maimed faces and corroded objects. The color palette he chose--dark, dulled colors--sets a melancholy mood.

My favorite picture was "Keeper of Secrets". A huge stone pear sits under stormy skies. It has cracked, with shards piling up on the ground and the middle crumbling away to reveal a key. The keyhole, strangely, is on the pear's exterior. The paint is mostly blue, with a few flecks of yellow or brown in the ground. Although it is a rather simple composition, it holds deep feelings. I think the survivors of the Holocaust are just like the pear. Although they may have hidden locked their memories and hidden the key deep inside, the memories will haunt them and eventually break down the walls and burst out.

Art Lesson: Holocaust

So far, we've seen been learning about musical and written literature reactions to the Holocaust. None could give a clearer picture of their experience than paintings. Paintings show a combination of what a person saw and what a person felt.
We walk into the classroom where huge posters lay on separate collections of desks. They are the works of Samuel Bak, a child trapped in a polish Jewish ghetto around 1942. Here is few of what we saw:

Sounds of Silence: A string quartet is camoflauged in a mess in an open field. Each person in the quartet played a different role in the Holocaust (German soldier and Jewish prisoner). Everyone's instrument had no strings, showing that absolutely nobody had a voice in this war.

Family Tree: A tree grows from a crematorium with Jewish stars for leaves. But unlike most trees who look strong, this one looks weak. The message from this painting was that the Holocaust destroyed Jewish families. Different roles in their families had been killed off.

Greetings from Facing History & Ourselves

I've posted links to our blog on the Facing History & Ourselves page on Facebook, and whoever it is that updates their Facebook page wrote this comment back to me:

"We've been reading the posts. Very thoughtful reflections. Please tell your students that we were impressed."

I second that comment. The posts so far have been great, and there are two more student bloggers still to come.

Pixtures from our class sessions with Mark Davis of FHAO

We have now finished the book!

In truth, this was my second time reading Night--I found, though, that I noticed many details this time around that had escaped me the first time I read the book. Also, various ideas discussed in class, such as eugenics, impossible decisions, and the Holocaust's effect on faith, deepend my understanding of the work.

I found the book, overall, to be a powerful reflection on humanity and it's potential for cruelty. The tone was tired, somber, as though life was to much for Wiesel. Even the ending was somewhat pessimistic. In his life, however, I believe Wiesel has shown what can be made of such a horrific experience--how to rise above it, and use the experience to shape a better future.

We are now focused entirely on preparing for the event. Positions are being assigned, themes/content are being discussed, lessons are being taught that we, in turn will teach our guests.

Today we focused in on Jewish musicians of the Holocaust. We listened to music they had composed while being held in concentration camps, and analyzed/responded to it. I found that I greatly enjoyed the excercise--their music had a modern, creative quality to it, and the emotion of the music was almost palpable. One of the selections--Passacaglia & Fugue for String Trio-- had a desolate, somber quality, while the other, String Quartet # 2 Opus 7, was more frantic, bristling, with a hint of anger.

Soon, we will be discussing fine art as a way to respond to the Holocaust. As an artist myself, I am looking forward to this excercise. :)