When I started my FSJ, I already knew that the descendants meeting would take place during my second week of work. Even though I was prepared (somewhat) for it on paper, I was still nervous and rather unsure of what to expect, and how the atmosphere would be like once everyone had arrived.
It’s been a bit since then and if I had to describe the descendants’ meeting now and what I was feeling in one word I would say connection. Connection with the ancestors, and the families, who once lived in Freudental, through the Lines of Life. Connection with the other descendants, who had traveled from across the world to gather here, and also connection with the people who had put in the work to make this meeting possible. It wasn’t just about remembering history, it was about building bridges, between the places, the families, the generations. To embrace the light, after the darkness, like Freudental’s angel of light, who was born by the angel of darkness.
Probably the most impressive moment for me was walking along the Lines of Life, together with the descendants and seeing the families whose ancestors are buried there, walk along the lines that link them to Freudental, and each other. Some lines even circled back to the same person, showing how relatives being separated by oceans still shared a common ancestor in this tiny town, where they now met again, generations later. I truly understood why the cemetery is referred to as “Beit Chaim”, the “House of Life”.
Though there were a lot more memorable moments connected to the meeting. Like David Rubins Art exhibit, with the “Freudental angel of darkness”, who birthed the angel of light, capturing the feeling of loss and now hope that the descendants feel is connected to Freudental.
And like the Art exhibition, the Shabbat prayer on Friday, will be a memory that I’ll carry on, how there was a single last ray of sunshine, that perfectly illuminated Mark in particular, while he sang. Equally important to me were the personal encounters. I was worried that the interactions would be distant and formal, but instead they were warm and personal, often joyful, despite the past. I’ll probably always remember the family dinner with the Rubins, where the three kids made an instant German friend, as they played together and connected without a shared language.
One more moment that stood out to me was the tree planting. It really symbolizes leaving a living piece behind in Freudental, one that will continue to grow and carry the memory of their ancestors and the memory of the meeting into the future. It reflects what the whole meet up was about: Roots, growth, continuity and connection.
Looking back, I realize how the descendants’ meeting connected much more than just relatives with their ancestors. It connected people across borders, across generations, across oceans, and across experiences, similar to the idea of the Lines of Life. It’s a connection we share, to the ancestors, to the cemetery, to Freudental, and to each other.
Ike Trinkner, volunteer at the PKC