Nick

Nick Shanahan


 * Hope**

Hitler, nazis, Gestapo Their hatred was so blind It's just unbelievable The sadism, the cruelty Inhumanity of man against man

Auschwitz, the Final Solution Mashed together like sardines Striped clothes and shaved heads Gas chambers Takes two to four minutes

I'm not going to become ashes Starving, struggling to survive It was an eternity Hebrew songs, prayers Hoping

Americans, Americans! Liberate the remaining Jews Free human being The pleasure of living is wonderful I knew I was in heaven

Rationale: My poem is about hope. Even though Hitler and the nazis did terrible things to the Jewish population, some of them never lost hope that they would survive. I wrote my poem about hope because I feel that if the Jews didn't have hope then all of them would have died instead of "struggling to survive" I chose the line "I'm not going to become ashes" because whoever said this was going to try their best not to die and stay hopeful about their future.