Rose
Rose was not a Holocaust survivor.
Rose was a lively 97 year old.
Most of us never knew her.
That’s the way it should have been.
But now we know: she was a mother
a mother to 2 sons and a daughter
unlike so many others of her time.
She was a proud grandmother
to 5 grandchildren, 1 great grandchild
who called her bubbie
Yiddish for grandmother.
We also know: Rose Mallinger
born 1923, in Pennsylvania
died in her synagogue
on Tuesday, October 28, 2018
in the delightfully named area of Pittsburgh, Squirrel Hill
in one of the original United States,
in the land of the free, home of the brave
shot dead by an American nazi.
And this too we know:
no matter the ovens were more than an ocean away,
no matter the gas was more than a half century ago,
the “full of life” Rose bubbie and ten more
are no longer Holocaust survivors.
This was read by Hal at Poets to the People – very moving and appreciated by the audience. Well do Hal it’s a thoughtful poem.
Thank you, Hal.