I Never Saw Another Butterfly

Last night we saw an emotional, heartbreaking story of the holocaust in a place called Terezin. It goes without saying that it was emotional and heartbreaking. All stories of the holocaust are horrific, incomprehensible, and gut-wrenching. Yet they are also testaments to the incredible strength and endurance of the human being created in the image of G-d, the faithfulness and perseverance of G-d's people in the face of the most dastardly, devilish, wicked acts perpetrated by human beings acting on a feral level, a barely believable level of depravity. The play was performed by Colorado ACTS. Their byword: "Bringing quality children's drama education to the local community."

"Over 15,000 Jewish children passed through Terezin, and only about a hundred were still alive when Terezin was liberated at the end of the war. One of the survivors, Raja, having lived through it all, teaching the children when there was nothing to teach with, helping to give them hope when there was little enough reason for hope, creating a little world of laughter, of flowers and butterflies behind the barbed wire, tells the true story of the children. It’s her play and it’s theirs. There were no butterflies at Terezin, of course, but for the children, butterflies became a symbol of defiance, making it possible for them to live on and play happily while waiting to be transported. It is an emotional and powerful production commemorating these precious lives lost."

The book of children's drawings and poems is available at Amazon.com.