We started off our third day in Poland by davening at the Nozyk synagogue in Warsaw, where we saw living proof of the continued Jewish life in Poland after the Holocaust and heard from Rabbi Shai,the Israeli shaliach in Warsaw. We then drove to the Warsaw Jewish cemetery and heard divrei torah on several important Rabbis at their burial sites, including the Netziv, Rav Chaim of Brisk, and the Modzhitz Rebbe. This brings us to the main focus of the day, our visit to the Majdanek concentration and death camp. We learned about the terrible living conditions, stories, and hardships of the many victims there and walked through the camp to see the bunkers, watchtowers, gas chambers, and more for ourselves. This really helped bring the atrocities of the Holocaust to life and gave me a deeper understanding and connection to the horrible events that occurred there. As one of the songs we played there says, we must tell our story to our children and grandchildren, and must never forget what happened, especially in these hard times. We then went to the Lublin Jewish cemetery, where we visited the graves of the Maharshal and the Chozeh (Seer) of Lublin, and learned about the important lives they each led. Finally, we ended the day at Yeshivat Chachmei Lublin, where we heard the yeshiva's history and brought Torah-learning back to the beit midrash.
Nira Kessler
