Special Assignment

Today was our last day in the cemetery. My goal was to push myself as much as possible to get through the big pile of debris still left to burn. As soon as I got started shoveling ash, one of the Polish caretakers came over and told me he wanted me doing something else. He led me to a large burial site. This was the tomb of the Joseph Bergmann family. He then instructed me to fill in the grave. Apparently this tomb was robbed and what was left was a giant hole where the coffin lay. I realized that in order to fill in this grave I had to stand on and remove soil from the family members. Along the way I kept hitting large stones, pieces of the ornate tomb. I wanted very badly to be able to piece them all back together, but quickly realized I had no idea how they all fit. So the best I could do was uncover them and place them on the edge of the burial site. I do not understand how even if you hated someone and thought of them as less than you, how you could still not respect the life that existed and the dead. Finding and removing beer bottles from inside the grave hurt me in a very profound way. I struggle still to understand the destruction, although I feel ready to heal. After finishing my work at that grave site I made my way to a new fire and started clearing as much as I could. I was grateful when we stopped to gather and Dan explained the importance of winding down and saying goodbye. When it came time, I took the photos I needed to take and then found a spot where I could look out at the cemetery and I prayed. I prayed that God would continue to use the destruction we create to help teach and heal. I prayed for this trip, for its mission in the hope that its meaning would extend beyond the walls of the cemetery and into the hearts of many passerby.
Tonight we arrived in Krakow. We got a brief tour from Matt and it seems as though there are a lot of interesting sites in the city. He was right, it is quite beautiful and the stay in a hotel on comfortable beds is a nice reprieve. For now I know I must prepare myself mentally for the end. The tour tomorrow will hopefully be interesting and I am sure that my time spent at Auchwitz will be challenging.
I am eternally grateful for the opportunity to have worked in the cemetery. I hope our work has meant something to both the living and the dead. To assure myself all I have to do is to think of Dr. Kellerman. In telling the story of his parents and relating their experiences to our purpose here, has been very moving and something I will never forget.