Peace – Lorin Duckman Today

Duck’s Yizkor Lights

WE always light candles on Yizkor. Depends on how many people we want to remember and how much light we can handle. It’s a Jewish custom to remember the dead. A cemetery visit would not hurt, but its geographical range is limited.

We also make a donation. By being better people, we elevate the memories of the dead, most of whom should not have died in vain.

Here, we honor and remember Sharon’s mother and father and mine. The middle candle is for all the people whom no one remembers, including all the people killed in Israel this year, all the people of Palestine killed this year and all the people killed in the Ukraine.

May there be peace.

Burlington VT Knows Hate

Ohavi Zedek Synagogue in Burlington VT was the site of an anti-semetic attack in 2009. First they went to Temple Sinai. Then they went to the Chabad. Everyone knew about it and few came, not Peter Welch, not Bernie Sanders, and not Pat Leahey. Miro Weinberger, the Mayor, a Jew, also passed. I went and cried, too upset to even make a lot of photos. And I can still hear the kid yelling hateful slogans he didn’t know the meaning of and had been taught to say.

My friend Stan Greenberg, who is blind, said he came to “Bear Witness” and to protect the shul against evil thoughts. He brought his dog, Ernie. “They’ll come through me,” he said. “I’m not moving.”

Clowns who follow the haters made fun, showing the absurdity. But as good intentions as they had, the stench of the haters and the sound of their chants could be smelled and heard. Nothing could make it go away.

Rabbi Joshua closed the Thrift Shop. He went back to his study. No mitzvahs today.

We try to live in peace, but we have little to do with what others do. We try to do our best to be kind and giving, to be thoughtful and loving. But sometimes it don’t work. Killing those who would kill you first may be morally correct, but killing those who haven’t had a chance to live and don’t know why they are dying and cannot do anything about it, never is.

Calla Lilies

Why do people adore these flowers? They hang peacefully and then droop when it is time to go. The viewer wants to know their relationship, but cannot. Venus, the goddess of love, sex, and beauty, felt so threatened by their beauty that she cursed the flower to decrease its appeal. They exude beauty and spread passion, even with their indifference to one another. Standing somewhere between lust and jealousy, no one can know how they really feel.

Ducks Do Walking Wounded

So, Sharon stepped wrong going for a backhand. Tendonitis. Me, flipper fingers. Podiatrist wrapped her foot. Hand doctor put me out, cut and sutured. Seems like we are always at one doctor’s office or another. What would we do without health care? What do others do?

Norman Frajman, Survivor

So, Norman isn’t the first survivor I have met or photographed. His willingness to speak about the experience, along with his eloquence, was new. He shares his story tirelessly with groups in the Palm Beach County area in hopes of keeping the memories of the dead alive. Those who hear him and see his mementos must feel as touched as I did.

How he survived is not so important. Those who lived through the hell of the Holocaust all have a tale. He cannot explain why he survived and others didn’t, except to say it was an act of providence. The violence and hatred he saw is unimaginable. That he and others can live without overbearing pain and paralysis makes him and his fellow survivors super human. That is important.

But, what is more important is that we never forget them and that the carnage will never be repeated.

Pulse

Why War

We stood in mourning at the American Cemetery with people from all over the world. All came knowing the dead even if we weren’t related by anything other than our sadness. Kids mostly lie at rest. Carerra marble stones don’t have dates or places of birth. The dead came from somewhere in the US. Had mothers, fathers, sisters and brothers. Deprived of their life for no reason other than their desire to stop the madness and mayhem of State murder, all believing they were doing right for the right reasons. Many of their brothers lie else where, closer to home. We felt them, too.

There is silence in the place, people in the graves have muffled voices. I wanted to unearth the remains, hug the bodies and say thanks. But when I went with the group and saw this statue, my eyes dried a bit and my heart filled with rage. I looked at the figure and it said to me, arms and voice raised, “WHY WAR.”