I don’t think I have the right words to describe today.

 

Having been interested in this period of history, I have read and studied many documents about the holocaust – I have even taught it to secondary students. No amount of background can adequately prepare you for the enormity of visiting these camps – it is an assault on the senses.

 

I am not going to go into details of what I saw today, I am numb. It was exactly as I expected, but this has not made it any easier.

 

The hardest part of my day was retracing the footsteps of those who were sent from the trains directly to the gas chambers: the group on the right. With every step I thought about the thousands and thousands of Mothers who had walked this path with their children. I walked that path with Hamish in my mind. I thought of Jess, Rod, my parents, my sisters: who else would be walking this path with me?

 

Taking photographs seemed inappropriate. I took two. You will probably recognise them both. I will never forget them.