You had their faith in your hands To you alone did the pray In each place their feet touched the ground They had your name on their lips And you didn't save them And you didn't stretch your hand to help them And the six million perished My their memory be with us forever Translator's footnote: My God Return [Col. He was tired and went straight to bed, but he couldn't fall asleep.
He overheard his father talking about the London radio reporter's alarming news, [Col. The German airplanes bombarded Russians cities and villages. The first news in Sventzian came from the radio: [Col. That evening, columns of retreating Red Army militia passed through Sventzian, we noticed many white heads amongst them, bandaged and wounded soldiers.
The German military arrived in Kovno by train, then they occupied Vilna. The Lithuanians joined the Germans. Russian townsfolk were fleeing together with workers of the Russian Regime, and many Jews were fleeing with them. Many fleeing Jews turned back they felt remorse leaving their families behind and on the way they were shot by Lithuanian bandits.
In terror and in awe we waited for the arrival of the Germans. He was above medium height with an energetic face, grey eyes and red hair. His father, Abraham Gertman, was a shoemaker, patching shoes, barely making a living and was also involved in community affairs and world politics.
The entire responsibility of the household lies on Isike. His father Chaim Yocai was a tailor, overworked and barely made a living. Yoske Rudnitski, short with a small round face, always smiling was full of humour. His father Pesach Rudnitski was a wagoner, day and night he brought merchandise from Sventzian to Vilna and back. Moishke Shutan, one year older than Yoske, of medium height with black hair, dark eyes, was ambitious and one of the best students in the Gymnasia.
