Pavel Friedman, April 6, 1942
Born in Prague on January 7, 1921.
Deported to the Terezin Concentration Camp on
April 26, 1942.
Died in Aushchwitz on September 29, 1944.
The last, the very last,
So richly, brightly, dazzingly yellow.
Perhaps if the sun's tears would sing
against a white stone
Such, such a yellow
Is carried lightly 'way up high.
It went away I'm sure because it wished to
kiss the world goodbye.
For seven weeks I've lived in here,
penned up inside this ghetto
But I have found my people here.
The dandelions call to me
and the white chestnut candles in the court.
Only I never saw another butterfly.
That butterfly was the last one.
Butterflies don't live in here,
In the ghetto.
Activity 1
Questions to discuss:
1. Who do you think wrote this poem?
2. What experiences do you think generated this poem?
3. To what is the poem referring?
4. How does this poem make you feel?
Activity 2
Give the students many sheets of colorful paper, glitter,
glue, scissors and string. (Any decorative items will do.) Have
the students create a butterfly that is a representative of
the author of their own poem. Students should write the
name of their child on the butterfly if the child’s name is
available.
Have the students prepare to discuss why they chose the
enhancements of each of their own butterflies. (It is
important to let each child be creative and encourage them
to make whatever butterfly they feel comfortable making.)
Then with string, have the students hang their butterflies
from the ceiling on string. (You may use a hole punch to make
a place to attach the string to the butterfly.) Every
student’s butterfly (soul of the author of their poem) should
be displayed.
By the end of the class period you will have many bright and
beautiful butterflies hanging from the ceiling that represents
the children of Terezin .
It's difficult for most people to imagine the horrors of the
Holocaust. World War II can be a distant memory even for those
who lived it.
"For many, as they were led to their deaths, their last words
were: 'Remember us,' .
…………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………………
At Terezin was found a small collection
of Children’s Drawings and Poems.
More than 12,000 children under the age of 15 passed through
the Terezin Concentration Camp between the years 1942-1944.
More than 90 percent perished during the Holocaust.
In these poems and pictures drawn by the young inmates of Terezin,
we see the daily misery of these uprooted children, as well
as their courage and optimism, their hopes and fears.
This set of activities should demonstrate to children that very
few children survived in Terezin. The butterflies were hung in
front of the class with such beauty, such hope, only to be cut
down for no reason. The butterflies that survived the cutting are
usually not the most beautiful, not the biggest, and not the
brightest. Just like the children of Terezin, death of the children
was random. The most beautiful did not live, nor did the biggest.
Make sure your students understand that many dreams died with
the children of Terezin, dreams just like their own.
Point out that one of the children (butterfly) could have been a
Michael Jordan.
One could have been the person that cured AIDS.
They all had dreams, they all had hopes, and they all lost them in
Terezin, the place where butterflies don’t live.
Activity 3
In an effort to remember them, Holocaust Museum Houston is collecting
1.5 million handmade butterflies.
The butterflies will eventually comprise a breath-taking exhibition, currently
scheduled for Spring 2012, for all to remember.
As of Summer 2008, the museum had already collected an estimated 400,000
butterflies
What is the Butterfly Project?
Why is it important?
By Mindy Michaels
“I never saw another butterfly…butterflies don’t live in here, in
the ghetto.” Pavel Friedman wrote these words 20 days before
he died in the ghetto of Terezin concentration camp. Pavel
describes the horrors of living in the Nazi concentration camp
from a young person’s perspective . Of the 15,000 children who
passed through Terezin, the usual stop before the Auschwitz
death camp, fewer than 100 remained to tell of the horrors.
We as Jews have been given the responsibility never to forget
what the Nazis did to our community. With that responsibility
has come the great challenge to preserve the memory of each
victim. Yet is it enough to construct a single memorial? Is it
enough to only remember those victims who have someone
alive to tell their story? The answer is a simple “no.” Each
person who was killed in the Holocaust had a unique story, a
unique life. And many may not have had families who survived
to tell their stories. Among those who did survive, many have
made it their work to find new and innovative methods to
preserve the memory of each individual victim.
How was the poem “The Butterfly ” found?
The children of the Terezin concentration camp wrote and
drew many pictures as an expression of their emotions during
the horrific time period in which they lived. Art has been found
even in the death camps and the stories of the Holocaust have
been preserved through the victims’ efforts to leave a message
behind for the world to see.
What else can I do to help remember the victims of the
Holocaust?
Anything from writing in their memory to educating yourself
and others about the horrors can serve to preserve the victims’
lives. It has been the mission of museums not to clump the
victims as one, but rather to remember victims individually so
that each person is remembered and not just a number.
Taking Action
Make a Butterfly
You can make these butterflies to help accomplish the goal of
Holocaust Museum Houston and IRAC and create an event for
your youth group or congregation that helps to educate the
community on the Holocaust. Follow the links below for the
template to decorate butterflies for the IRAC project and
instructions to send unique and handmade butterflies for
Holocaust Museum Houston.
Butterfly Project ,Houston Holocaust Museum address:
http://www.hmh.org/minisite/butterfly/index.html
http://www.hmh.org/