Poetry by St. Thomas Aquinas High School Students
St. Thomas Aquinas High School
Edison, New Jersey
Sharon Taub, Librarian and Holocaust Project Facilitator
Read the 2020 Holocaust Workshop Student Poetry:
• Morristown High School, Morristown, New Jersey
• Kehilat Shalom, Belle Meade, New Jersey
• Maarif School USA, Bloomfield, New Jersey
• Temple Beth-El, Hillsborough, New Jersey
To the Daunting Nazi Soldier
Ryan Bell
Grade 9 Age 15
With thanks to Peter Fischl
I would like to be better with words
so, I could accurately portray the evilness
of your actions, daunting Nazi soldier.
With the Fuehrer in your brain, standing
there with your swastika armband
holding your machine gun sights
at an innocent boy.
I would make a monument
only in hopes your swastika-Aryan-
tinted glasses would come off to
open your eyes, daunting Nazi soldier.
With the Fuehrer in your brain
standing there with your swastika armband
holding your machine gun’s sights at an
innocent little boy.
You are pure evil, but not on your own
accord, please, open your eyes before
it’s too late, daunting Nazi soldier.
Higher Heights
Miguel Rodriguez
Grade 9 Age 15
Oh, little boy,
with your hands held high
as if to touch the sky
your face terrified
with thoughts of what’s
to come, don’t lose hope little boy,
don’t show them the fear
welled up inside, instead, show them
your bravery to lift the others
around you. Don’t lose hope little boy.
Keep your spirits high
And your hands to the sky
Reach for higher heights
above.
Arms Up
Mackenzie Cruz
Grade 9, Age 14
standing here,
with my arms up
I’m paralyzed
my legs are cement and my arms
are frozen (in shock)
The fear washes over me
like a tidal wave,
And I’m drowning
with shaking breaths,
I don’t know where to look,
where to go
what did I do wrong?
the blood rushing in
my ears, heart pounding
I can only stand here
with my arms up
Oh, Little Polish Boy
Kylie Ferber
Grade 9 Age 15
I couldn’t see
The fault in my actions
I see it now. I see it now.
Oh Lord above I promise
I see it now. I was wrong.
Oh, Polish boy please.
I know I was wrong, and
I’m sorry. I know what
You’re thinking,
Oh, Polish boy,
My sorry means nothing,
And hey, you’re right.
No # of sorrys can make up
For the torment and torture
I’ve put you, your family and
Countless others, through.
Oh, little Polish boy, what have I
Done to you?
To the Little Polish Boy
Sophie Hardy
Grade 9 Age 15
I can feel your eyes burning through the page
I can hear the silence
I can see the fear
and as I look away
I can still feel, hear and see the lack of hope
written on your face
The crowded photo only makes you look alone
How I wish I could reach into the photo
and take you away
How I wish your eyes weren’t a window
to your broken soul
I wish you didn’t have to be alone
I’m sorry that you were so alone.
To the Little Girl in the Darkness
Melody Cadet
Grade 9 Age 14
Little girl, I see the fear in your eyes
Little girl, I want to give you a hug,
and tell you everything will be alright.
You seem so young, innocent, vulnerable and alone
Little girl in the darkness.
I cry for you
I feel your pain
I want to take you in my arms
I want to help you
I want to see a smile on your face
Little girl in the darkness.
You belong here in my world
and I belong there, your world and time, little girl.
You should be here and I should be there.
It’s not fair.
A Mother’s Lament
Jackson B. Boomer
Grade 9 Age 15
In a Constant Flux
Of Motion
I hold you in my arms
From here to there
Without a care
Until a Gun’s
Alarm
In a Graceful Flux
Of Motion
I lift you from my arms
For you were sweet
And I was young
Until the Fascist Swarm
In a Deadly Flux
Of Motion
You’ve now left my arms
And I am forced
To watch and sob
For the motion is not
What it was.