Show and Tell

On Show and Tell day, Eva did show

Her golden star necklace that she got long ago

She told of a time called the Holocaust

Through which her Grandma called Bubby had never lost

That shiny necklace, or her prayers and wishes

And the laws of her faith and its special traditions

The star dangled from a little chain

It has lots of history, Eva did claim

It had had six points, she counted them all

More than the one of our Christmas tree in our hall 

I had never heard of this Holocaust from my best friend

But I hoped that it wouldn’t happen ever again

At recess Carl claimed it was make-believe

The Holocaust never happened, we all were deceived

I did not like that Eva told such a scary lie

The whole class ignored her all day, didn’t even tell why

On my was home from school I walked in a straight line

Eva walks the same way, she lives real close by

She called, “Blair wait! So we can walk together”

I whipped around with the wind in the cool autumn weather

“I can’t walk with a liar, and I can’t be your friend!”

As my words left my lips I heard the mean sound they sent

Eva swallowed real hard and stood real proud

“I am telling the truth”, She shouted out loud

“Come to my house and you may ask

My Bubby to tell you about her past”

I took a deep breath; Cause I couldn’t refuse

This was my chance to learn the real truth

Eva’s house was warm and smelled of sweets

A voice called, “Who’s hungry? I’ve baked a fresh treat.”

Her Bubby served us cider and apple crisp

I polished off every bite on my dish

But I noticed that as she turned to leave

There were black numbers under her sleeve

“Did you draw on yourself?, My Mom doesn’t let”

She closed her eyed and sighed; “These numbers help me not to forget”

She told me about how she was taken away

From her friends and her family, on her birthday

By bad guys called Nazis who wore spiders on their shoulders

And bullied everybody and spread hate all over

They didn’t like those who were different than them

So they made them wear golden stars on their pins

Just like the one hanging from Eva’s chain

It had survived with her, Bubby explained

“But I knew I’d escape and tell to the world

All that I’d seen when I was a girl

That necklace would be my way that it would be shown and told

The strength of my nation and it’s heart of gold”

The next show-and-tell, when it was my turn

I wanted to share what I had learned

 “Eva’s telling the truth and we cannot let

Lies about the past make us forget

If we don’t want to remember because it’s too sad

Then those souls are lost forever; we’ve learned nothing from the bad

That star is proof that you can survive

By keeping your hope and faith alive

We must show the strength that still lives today

And tell of the tales of those who found the way

If they didn’t fight for the truth then they would have fell

Now, we must prove to the world, we must show and tell