In Bergen-Belsen’s swamp, eighty years past,
Anne and Margot, sisters, breathed their last.
Now, released from Gaza’s grip, were their kin –
Romi, Emily, Doron, Naama; and then
Karina, Daniella, Liri breathed free,
Seven soldiers, daughters of history.
From Hamas’ hellscape to Israel’s embrace,
Can 476 days of horror ever be erased?
No.
Anne’s words echo through time’s haze,
Of attics, of hope, of harrowing days.
From Bergen-Belsen to evil’s lair,
Our suffering’s thread, unbroken, laid bare.
A fierce light ignites,
The Jewish state alights.
Anne shows no fright,
She rises, burning bright.
In Tel Aviv’s streets, jubilation unfolding,
In Palestine Square, sounds revolting,
“Death to the Jews” is on parade.
Was this a blood-soaked trade?
Yes and No.
Anne Frank did weep,
but now she roars to say this:
‘Our children are tigers.
They shall live,
And they shall soar.’
Anne Frank in 1940. Montessori school, Niersstraat 41-43, Amsterdam (the Netherlands). Photograph by unknown photographer. (Wikimedia)
Neil Seeman is an author, educator, essayist, mental health advocate, and entrepreneur. Neil is CEO of publishing firm Sutherland House Experts. At the University of Toronto, Neil is an Adjunct Professor and senior fellow at the Institute for Health Policy, Management and Evaluation, the Fields Institute, the Investigative Journalism Bureau, Massey College, and the HIVE Lab. Neil founded technology and Big Data firm RIWI Corp. and he is the author or co-author of several books on mental health topics. He was a founding editorial board member of the National Post and co-founder of the Health Strategy Innovation Cell. Neil’s last book was "Accelerated Minds: Unlocking the Fascinating, Inspiring, and Often Destructive Impulses that Drive the Entrepreneurial Brain" (Sutherland House). Neil is a graduate of the University of Toronto Law School (JD) and the Harvard T.H. Chan School of Public Health (MPH).