Holocaust Found Poem

it’s hard to talk about that

I was Jewish

and that was okay

it wasn’t an issue

it was a shock

if you can understand that

we had to leave

slowly but surely

he said “go”

not forced –

by choice

she said “no,

they stay”

we were afraid

left and right –

they found us

they tried

to get rid of us

it wasn’t unusual

– I escaped that

little incident

being Jewish was familiar

but Jewish presence

was a shock

I listened

morning, noon, and night

rifle down?

not by a long shot

you’re crazy –

just like that.

Found

me?
I drifted away long ago
got lost in a sea of
my own salt
and almost drowned
until now

Walking Around

after five minutes I am lost

but I know exactly where I am

the dried up concrete buckling under

every step – same as yesterday

or was that Tuesday?

my feet move mindlessly

dragging me where they know to go

even though

there is nowhere to go

in this town

I make circles

forgetting how I get from one place

to another

I stroll along serenely, with my eyes, my shoes, my rage –

forgetting everything

mind racing for minutes

or has it been hours?

worn holes crack through the rubber

as I feel the heaves in the road

after five minutes I am lost

and I don’t want to be found