Bremen, Germany 1935
A young recruit eager to turn things around
Become a man that would make his family proud
He’d never done well in school or on the field
But they promised this would make him a hero
Provide him with a stable future and life
A cold winter day- nothing new
Until something caught his eye
A frightened family scurried up the road
To hide their daughter away before curfew
There was something about the girl
She must have been 6 years old at most
There was something striking to the eye
Perhaps it was her lovely, red coat
Or the way she slinked down the street
With an occasional hop-
Oblivious to her mother’s plea not to stop
She looked at Erhard with a playful sense of glee
Moved two steps closer and touched his hand
Traced a finger around his wrist and sweetly said,
“Soldier you look sad. This cannot be!”
“I know a trick that my mother taught me”
“Close your eyes, just for one minute”
“And think of anything else”
“Ponies or tulips, perhaps pudding with syrup”
No sooner than had she spoken, she was gone

Munich, Germany 1937
Joseph flicked a cigarette and quickly curled
his fingertips into his palm
To spare them from the sacrificial cold
Screw the Third Reich he scoffed
Sign up and be a hero with the ladies???
It had been over 6 months since he’d touched a lady
Another truck rolled in,
unloaded the masses of impure ones
Herding them like cattle through the barbed wire gate
A speck of red caught his eye
and stood out against the sea of grey
It was a coat, yes a red coat
Worn by a girl- probably 7 or 8 years old
Despite her tiny physique, she looked full of life
Her curls bounced as she moved
She wore a smile that resembled innocence
And hid years of suffering
As she moved past him, she caught his eye
And spoke in unwavering tone
“Soldier you look unhappy, this should not be”
“Years ago my mother told me”
“If things make you unhappy”
“They are not meant to be”
“You can live a better life”
“Far from here”
“In a land filled with laughter”
“Not sadness and fear”
Joseph bowed his head
and for a moment let himself feel shame
A feeling that he’d kept suppressed for far too long
When he looked up, she was gone

Auschwitz, Poland 1941
Everywhere Erich looked, he saw the sullen faces
Of the ones who had been stripped of their identity
They shuffled aimlessly around the place
and lingered about in groups of three or four
How he wished he could be back home
With his wife and his darling girl
His little darling Gratia
She would be 8, in a few weeks time
He noticed a girl, a few years older than Gratia
She wore a red coat draped over her shoulders
It was far too small for her to wear properly
She looked nothing like his Gratia,
With her dark curls and thick brows
But he couldn’t help feeling a deep sense of sorrow
When he looked at her
The girl in the red coat looked in his direction
But her eyes went right through him
As though he was a ghost
Was he a ghost? This didn’t feel like living
The girl spoke to a boy who sat next to her on the bunk
The words were not intended for Erich
But he took them and carried them as though they were
“My friend I can see that you are in pain”
“This won’t be forever, this suffering won’t last”
“You have fond memories to hold on to”
“Of times from your past”
“Stay strong and never lose hope”
“For you’ll be invincible under my coat”
Erich turned and moved away, quick in his stride
He did not see the girl pass her coat to the boy
Who attempted a smile as he wrapped himself in the red coat

Auschwitz, Poland 1943