What If It Was Me?

I visited Dachau in June , 2023, and took a few photographs, but out of respect for those who suffered and were murdered there, I only took a few. However, I felt compelled to take a few photographs to use them for the stories I write about Dachau and for the context of the Holocaust.

There was a striped outfit on display which had been worn by someone who was incarcerated in Dachau. He survived.

No matter what angle I tried, the picture did not come out right. The reflection always made it appear as if I was wearing it.

That made me think, “What if it was me who had worn the garment?” If I had been born a few decades earlier, it easily could have been me.

What if it was me? Would I have survived?

What if it was me? Would I have betrayed my fellow men?

What if it was me? Would I have resisted?

What if it was me? Would I have kept my sanity?

What if it was me? Would I have protected my family or just myself?

What if it was me? Would I have forgiven the perpetrators?

What if it was me?

To be honest—I don’t know the answer to those questions.

(repost from July 22,2023)

2 responses to “What If It Was Me?”

  1. kittenbasket Avatar
    kittenbasket

    When teaching about the Holocaust to young people, a good question to ask at the end is: “Let´s say it´s 1944, and you are in Auschwitz. Would you rather be there as a prisoner, or as an SS guard, and why?”

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  2. When I was 10, my father worked with a man who had been a German soldier in WWII. He met & married a Jewish woman who was a survivor of one of the camps. They immigrated to the US sometime in the 50s.

    We were invited to their house for an outdoor picnic one Sunday. I remember my mother telling us that the woman had “numbers” tattooed on her arm from the camp & we were forbidden to say anything about them or ask her anything about her experience. But I remember seeing them.

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