Israel Reflections 2013–Yad Vashem
Today’s post is from Brendan Byrne on visiting the Yad Vashem Holocaust Memorial – a regular stop for visitors to Israel including the President this past month.
Yad Vashem is the official memorial to the victims and survivors of the Holocaust that took 6 million lives and left physical and emotional scars on millions more during World War II. The museum itself is located on a tranquil and peaceful mountaintop surrounded by walking paths that allow for reflection after the atrocities recounted within.
To enter the museum everyone must cross a wooden bridge. Once inside I immediately noticed that I was surrounded by 30 foot high concrete walls and instantly recognized that I was not entering the comforts of home; it was something far from home. Rounding the first turn I saw a single long hallway that seems to be brightly lit at the end, but I couldn’t just walk a straight path to that light; the path is blocked by numerous wired fences.