I Think I Heard a Siren Today

Part I.

Countless, numberless Jews have lived and breathed upon the stage of history. Imagine if you could take the hearts and souls of all those Jews—their dreams, fears, joys, dances, tears, laughter, songs, sighs, hates and loves—and squeeze them all into just six million Jews. All of that, concentrated into just them. Now imagine if those six million hearts and souls could be concentrated into just one minute, and if that minute had a voice.

What would that voice sound like?

I think I heard it this morning.

It was at 10:00 a.m., Israel time.

it was so piercing.

it stunned everyone:

We stood breathless, in awed silence.

Part II.

Six survivors light the flames.

And flaming ovens.

once consumed six million.

Every year they light the flames.

Nitzulei Shoah. The numbered people.

Etched on wrinkled old arms, trembling from the silence of covid,

howling at the door.

Never in the history of the dust of the earth were there people like these;

aged, nitzulei, numbered people. Ember people.

Never will there be such glory again.

Part III.

Unless or course.

They are us.

planting with tears. Joyously harvesting.

Hundreds of millions of us. Six million of us.

hearts and souls concentrated into just one minute, one voice.

Imagine what that voice would sound like.

I think I heard it this morning.

It was at 10:00am, Israel time.