Rosa Levy Revisited: The Desecration of Her Cemetery
She missed the Shoah,
napping in her
19th century crib.
Then a Shoah
came to her home,
toppling tombstones
condoms left in the grass.
Children shaken awake
cry for their mothers,
not knowing that
they too were dead,
and no rabbi to drip honey
on their tongues, teaching
the sweetness of words,
since no words were said.
The hate-fueled hurricane
grounded their granite,
razing their Yiddish.
But her tiny headstone
by the fence survived,
untouched by violence
like some child hidden
in a righteous gentile’s
attic, missing another Shoah.
*Shoah is the Hebrew word for the Holocaust
11 thoughts on "Rosa Levy Revisited: The Desecration of Her Cemetery"
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Amazing piece, devastating and clarion.
Powerful cadence throughout, powerful story.
Like how you started with Shoah and ended with it.
Love:
no rabbi to drip honey/on their tongues, teaching/the sweetness of words
the rush of hate amplified: hate-fueled hurricane/grounded their granite/razing their Yiddish.
like some child hidden
in a righteous gentile’s
attic, missing another Shoah.
Love “no rabbi to drip honey / on their tongues.” Just beautiful, buddy. Great poem!
My favorite part too! Love this poem, Lee!
Powerful poem
So many powerful lines.
The entire piece is gorgeous. I am especially drawn to this:
“Children shaken awake
cry for their mothers,
not knowing that
they too were dead,
and no rabbi to drip honey
on their tongues, teaching
the sweetness of words,
since no words were said.”
I’m confused by the condom line. Who desecrated whose gravesite and why?
We don’t know for sure. The whole cemetery was vandalized and we found used condoms in the grass.
It’s a Jewish cemetery, but I can’t say for sure that it was an act of antisemitism, so I’m reluctant to say why.
In these poems, Lee, you are providing her geulah. So redeeming and meaningful. Thanks for sharing.