Rebekah Coomber, 'They Lied'

[duathir.livejournal.com]

They Lied

Sent to a better life, they told us. They lied.

Packed to go, our lives in a suitcase.
Forced on a train, sardines in a tin.
Destination? Unknown.
We'll be there soon, they told us. They lied.

Half of us dead, most of us dying.
We arrived, our lives thrust into Nazi fists.
Families separated, people alone.
You'll see them again, they told us. They lied.

They picked us out, worthy from useless.
Was this just a sick game?
Who were they to say? Who were they to judge?
It'll be over in a while, they told us. They lied.

Fear for our lives.
People left and never came back.
Our backs broken, our bodies broken, our hearts broken.
"Heil Hitler, he will save the world," they told us. They lied.

No bravery in our eyes anymore.
Only tears.
Sore from weeping, sore from sleeping.
"Work will set you free, harder," they told us. They lied.

The innocent forsaken.
The faithful destroyed.
How so uncompassionate? How so empty? How so cold?
You are all bad Jews, they told us. They lied.

I am God's child, I told them.
I am a light in the darkness, I told them
It's just a shower, they told me.
They lied. They lied. They lied..

By Rebekah Coomber