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As always, please be considerate of your fellow Fictioneers and keep your stories to 100 words. (Title is not included in the word count.) Many thanks.
The next photo is the PROMPT. Remember, all photos are property of the photographer, donated for use in Friday Fictioneers only. They shouldn’t be used for any other purpose without express permission. It is proper etiquette to give the contributor credit.
PHOTO PROMPT submitted by Courtney Wright. © Photographer prefers to remain anonymous.
Genre: Historical Fiction
Word Count: 100
FOOTPRINTS
The uniformed matron smiled. “Take off your shoes and tie the laces together so you can find them more quickly after your shower.”
The doors clanked shut behind the child. No cleansing water sprayed from the nozzles.
Cold tile chilled his bare feet. Naked, he shivered and gasped his final breaths.
“Mama! Mama!”
His desperate, silenced voice rattles my soul.
Could he have been another Einstein?
Perhaps he’d have been a storyteller whose words delighted thousands.
The shoe is crumpled and the eyelets are rusted. It fits the palms of my hands—the only evidence of a candle snuffed aborning.
*
*
*
Rochelle Wisoff-Fields-Addicted to Purple 
No, no, no! You went there, Rochelle. This is very heart wrenching. A lovely write, yes. But very difficult to read. But, the reality was much more disturbing than the fiction, yes?
Varad.
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Dear Varad,
It was a difficult piece to write. Based on too many true ones. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Tragic, Rochelle. Even if he hadn’t been another Einstein or a great storyteller, he would have been a man
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Dear Neil,
Too many men and women cut off before they had a chance to realize their potentials. 😦 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Horrific.
But subtly told.
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Thank you, C.E.
Horrific was my intent.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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The heartbreak of that horrible time never diminishes.
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Dear Linda,
No, the heartbreak doesn’t diminish. 😦 Thank you for taking the time to read and comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Well told, if hard. The first paragraph makes it worse – genocide with a smile. Well, actually, what makes it worse is that it is based on truth 😦
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Dear Trent,
Genocide with a smile. True story. In this case, truth is infinitely worse than any fiction this writer could create. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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This story is always hard to stomach, Rochelle. You told it with great poignancy.
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Dear Michael,
Hard to stomach, indeed. We ask why? Writing these stories is my way of saying NEVER AGAIN!!! Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Terrifying. There’s a scene in the movie Die Fälscher where the forgers are led into the showers that actually turn out to be showers. They were the rare exception. Good, grim story.
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Dear Josh,
That anyone could do this to a child…thousands of children…it defies imagination. 😦 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Hard to read, knowing it was real 😦 Heartbreaking Rochelle and so well written.
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Dear Bettina,
Thank you for your affirming comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Heartbreaking.
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Wahrheit, Gabi. 😦 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Very powerful flash. The friendly smile of the matron belies the evil behind it.
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Dear Subroto,
My motive exactly. 😦 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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My father survived Auschwitz. This hit me in my memory of him, and the few stories he would tell of that time.
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Dear Stuart,
My heart goes out to you as the child of a survivor. We had relatives that I never knew who perished. My mother would speak of this and it’s apparent that it had a profound effect on her. Thank you for your affirming comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Hi: I have no clue where the inLinkz is (or what it is for). My story link is https://stuartnager.wordpress.com/2018/05/16/boots-in-distress-friday-fictioneers/
Thanks for the prompt.
Stu
Tale Spinning
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Oh, sniff! My mind sees this in vivid detail and color… Like a flashback from some long ago life… The effect is chilling… From all the years listening to the memories of survivors makes this piece feel all too real. Leaves me affected in a way that’s not easy to put into words….
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Dear Jelli,
Like you, I’ve grown up under the shadow of the Holocaust and have heard many stories. They never cease to shock me and leave me grieving. 😦 Your tears are my five star review.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Sniffle… hard to top yours this week.
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Oh Rachel! This broke my heart. 😥 I am an avid reader and one of my favorite genre is historical fiction and WWII remains one of my favorite themes to read on. Every time I read one of these books, I am left feeling that the cruelty and suffering was so unimaginable and so pointless and yet, what stands out for me is the undaunting nature of the human spirit and how love triumphed even in the midst of the abject darkness. Well done my friend.
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Sorry, Rochelle. Sometimes auto correct acts like such a know it all!
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Dear Kasturi,
This is why I disable auto correct on every device. 😉
As a Jewish baby boomer, I grew up under the shadow of the Holocaust. Many of my parents’ friends, including my mother’s boss had the numbers tattooed on their arms. The stories of cruelty are horrifying indeed. I, too, have been an avid reader on the subject. There is a lot to be said for the human spirit that overcomes.
Thank you for such an affirming and wonderful comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Cannot even imagine what it must be like to have those numbers tattooed on your arms, a constant reminder of one of the darkest phases in the history of mankind. 😥
Hugs.
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Tough history. So much lost.
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Tough history indeed, Phyllis. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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This is so well written… not only the tragedy of a child murdered but the books unwritten,,, all the potential in a child.
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Dera Björn,
So many potentials snuffed out and we’re left asking ‘why?’ 😦 Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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What can I say to this? Wonderful, brutal writing Rochelle, one of your best.
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Dear Iain,
It’s hard to understand such brutality, isn’t it? Thank you for such a lovely comment.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I liked your take.. It is very sad but reality of what happened in Germany is. I figured people will look at these from a lot of different angles but I will write mine before I read any of them. Also… the story behind the boots: my friend was at his dad’s home (just turned 90) cleaning out the house. His father grew up during the Depression so he was of the mindset you never through anything away. These were his boots… ❤
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My parents didn’t throw anything away either. Mom would patch my jeans until it was hard to tell the original material from the patches. Dad would put tire patches on rubber boots keep out the water.
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Yes… it was the same with my grandparents. They didn’t believe in throwing things away if it could be repaired. It is why cobblers used to be invaluable…
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*threw not through 😳
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Dear Courtney,
I will never forget seeing the shoes at the Yad V’Shem, the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem. That coupled with the Children’s Memorial still brings tears to my eyes.
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Dear Courtney….again,
My mother was a child of the Depression. She never threw away an aluminum pie plate and she reused tin foil until there was nothing left to it. Perhaps we should consider these things before just tossing something. There might be a happy medium in this. 😉
Thank you for the photo and your affirming comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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💜
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Being raised by depression era parents, I’m just like them. I’m a recycling fiend, I wash and reuse plastic bags until they’re soft enough to use for diapers ~ well not really. I wish more of we humans had been raised this way.
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You’re a better woman than I am, Lish. 😉
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Beautifully written. There is such poignancy in possessions separated from their rightful owners, especially those that have belonged to children.
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Dear Jilly,
One of the most difficult things to look at at the Holocaust museums are the exhibits of all the confiscated shoes–especially those belonging to the children. 😦 Thank you
Shalom,
Rochelle
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A sad chapter in our history of mankind. To bad we can’t edit and re-write. Well done.
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Dear Jan,
A sad chapter indeed. Thank you.
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Many don’t see the light of the day, Rochelle.
Real story…
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Dear Anita,
The story is too real, isn’t it? Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Sneaker LeBeau,
What a heart-wrenching story. I read it twice and it broke my heart both times.
On a lighter note, I’ve had people tie my shoe laces together while I was still wearing them. No wonder I still take baby steps.
Nilsson Schmilsson
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Dear Nilsson Schnilsson,
I’ll have my eye on your shoelaces this weekend. I suspect it has something to do with your eye-hand lack of coordination.
Thanks for the heartbreaking comment. ❤
Shalom,
Sneaker LeBeau W(T)F
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Dear Sneaky LaBeau,
I have a feeling I’d better wear slip-on loafters or sit across the room from you this weekend. Otherwise, it might take me twenty minutes to hobble to the lecturn to give my presentation.
Schmilsson
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Why Schmillson, whatevah do you mean? Do you really think I’d stoop that low. (Actually it’s not that far down for me. Bwahahahahahahahaha!)
Shalom,
Sneaky LaBeau W(T)F
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My somber appreciation, Rochelle.
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Thank you, Nan.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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That was so very sad! There’s nothing else to say, is there?
Susan A Eames at
Travel, Fiction and Photos
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Dear Susan,
Sometimes the shortest comment is the grandest compliment. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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An impeccably written story, as always. The evil of those acts is hard to understand, hard even to contemplate.
Shalom
Penny
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Dear Penny,
How these monsters could do what they did is the last thing I want to understand. 😦 Thank you for your kind words re my story.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Soul wrenching.
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Thank you, Pensitivity.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Why bother tying the laces together? I can’t tell if it’s insult to injury or just stupid bureaucracy.
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That’s the irony, Alice. They did everything they could to make it look like a nice shower, all the while with murderous intent.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Unbearably sad, Rochelle. That opening line sent me in a different direction – the smiling matron fooled me for a moment. How could they smile? And yet part of me believes some of them did, that it was part of their job, trying to keep the inmates calm as they entered the ‘showers’. I’ve heard the Nazis turned to using Zyklon B gas because shooting Jews had proved ‘bad for morale’ – they wanted a more ‘hands off’ way to kill people. It’s the calculated, industrialised nature of the gas chambers that’s so chilling. How one set of human beings can sit and plan how to wipe out another.
Your story was so well written, so chilling, you had me close to tears. Well crafted story.
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Dear Lynn,
It’s unfathomable to me that anyone with a half a conscience could do what they did in the guise of ‘doing their job.’ But then, fear can do some terrible things to people. As for Zyklon B vs bullets, those Nazis certainly were analytical and efficient, weren’t they?
Thank you re my story. This is one of those that came simply and easily. (And we all know it’s a subject that’s near and dear to my heart.)
Shalom,
Rochelle
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There was an excellent film a few years ago called Conspiracy, a small, talky film starring Kenneth Branagh and Stanley Tucci about the Wannsee Conference, the Nazi party meeting held by Reinhard Heydrich in 1942 where the Final Solution was part organised. It’s the chilling banality that’s most striking – the meeting could be between any group of mangers and pen pushers in a large organisation, but the subject matter … I don’t know how closely it’s based on known facts – Heydrich made sure any records of the day were worded ambiguously, coached in known euphemisms rather than explicit wording – but the film makes it clear that these huge decisions that determined millions of lives and deaths was organised on an industrial scale, involving complex layers of bureaucracy. A well organised death machine. It’s on Amazon Prime if you’re interested – a hard watch but truly good.
Your story puts the personal back into this horrific, large scale destruction and is all the more moving for ir
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I might look that film up, Lynn. Although, I’ve seen many films and read so much…still much to be read. But what I don’t understand is how anyone can deny the Holocaust. The Nazis had set up such an organized and analytical death machine…even filmed their “accomplishments.” I don’t see how anyone could say that the Jews created a hoax. Really? And all those ugly tattoos. Such a conspiracy. Brilliant. 😦
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I know, it’s extraordinary, perverse, sickening that anyone could be a Holocaust denier. As I say, the film is harrowing, chilling but gripping too. The great architect of it all – Heydrich – was assassinated not long after, which would be a comfort were it not for the horrific reprisals the Nazis meted out. All too heartbreaking to think of
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‘First you must learn how to smile as you kill, if you want to be like the folks on the hill.’ There’s a line from Dickens’ ‘Hard Times’, where he refers to The first Epistle of St. Peter, which states that your enemy the Devil goes about like a roaring lion, looking for whomsoever he may devour. DIckens then explains that Satan wouldn’t have so big a fan club if he’d always admit his true colors right away.
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Dear Larry,
I’m familiar with the Epistle…a roaring lion indeed. And appears as an angel of light. Horrible times. Thank you for coming by.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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The first line Wrote was from an old John Lennon song.
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Someone had to pull the switch, over and over again. I can not wrap my head around that fact. You captured the “all in a days work feel” in the task. I doubt that many thoughts went into these “chores”.
Tracey
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Dear Tracey,
Sad but true. Nor can I wrap my head around such cold blooded killing as all in a day’s work. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Amazing read Rochelle! What used to happen is sometimes really hard to understand.
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Dear Shivam,
I’ll never understand it, nor will I try. But I will keep shedding light in that dark corner. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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I’m not sure I have the words. Truly heart-wrenching.
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Dear J.A.
‘Nuff said. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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So grim, sadly it still goes on today, with children of all ages still being mutilated and murdered. Humanity at its worst.
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Dear Mike,
When one devil goes away another takes his place, doesn’t it? How one justifies the murder or mutilation of children is beyond me. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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The smile at the beginning adds to the horror of what happens next. Heartbreaking.
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Dear Magarisa
How people could do such things…and to children, no less. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Such stories just rip at my soul, not because they were written, but because things like this truly happened. The further tragedy is how many Einsteins did they so casually snuff out? How much better could the world have been if those lives had continued on to bear fruit? This one really moved me. Thank you, Rochelle.
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Dear Eric,
Not only the Einsteins…perhaps the Rembrandts, the Potoks and all the mothers and fathers who never were 😦 Thank you for your affirming words.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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You know, it’s always the piles of shoes from the Holocaust victims that get me.
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Dear Lish,
Those piles of shoes get to me, too. Thank you for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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There’s nothing I can say that hasn’t already been said. So so sad.
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Dear Keith,
It’s hard to say anything, isn’t it? Without tears, that is Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Tragic, poignant and chilling all at once. Beautifully written.
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Thank you, Ali. Your words mean a lot.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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A poignant and touching tale, told with delicacy.
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Many thanks, Francine.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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You pay tribute to them all – men, women and children – with your heart wrenching prose, Rochelle. God bless all their souls.
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Dear Kelvin,
As long as I have breath in my body, I will pay tribute whenever possible. Thank you for your kind words that mean so much.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Rochelle,
I’m speechless. So brilliantly told. I still have writer’s block, so can’t think of anything further to add; your story said it all. It’s quite impossible to get inside the heads of those who would send children to their deaths like that, whether they were destined to be Einsteins or not.
Sorry I didn’t have time to chat last night. I hadn’t heard for a few months from the particular person who’d messaged me, and I always worry about him living somewhere that’s a bit politically unstable (we won’t mention the country by name here!).
All best wishes,
Sarah
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Dear Sarah,
No need to apologize about time. I completely understand I would do the same in that situation. (Would and have. 😉 )
How can anyone do what they did? So much potential…no matter what the child’s gifting. Thank you for taking the time to read and comment, my friend. I hope your writer’s block crumbles soon.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Rochelle,
My writer’s block has crumbled today. I actually managed to post a Monday Morning Haiku. Things are looking up 🙂
All best wishes,
Sarah
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Cried. Too much to bear. The trials of the young!😢
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Dear Sabina,
Your tears are high praise. Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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👍
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So tragic, and even a potential street-sweeper deserved to live. Haw on earth did those people live with themselves?
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Dear Liz,
There’s a saying that one who saves a life, saves the entire world. What does this say for those who murdered so many?
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Rochelle,
Your knack for bringing a story to life just gave me a pain in my heart. Beautifully and tragically done. No, we must never forget. That such horrors happened to people of all ages. Lives snuffed out for nothing.
Lotsa love,
Dale
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Dear Dale,
It’s easy to forget when the incidents are so far behind us, isn’t it? I guess one of my missions in this life is keep writing and put a face on these victims and keep them in your face. Unimaginable, isn’t it? 😦 Thank you for kindly affirming comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Indeed. And thank goodness you do…
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So heartbreaking.
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Thank you, Lisa. Heartbreaking indeed.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Heartbreaking stories. I’m reading a book now about stories about Jews during the second world war. I’m amazed and saddened with every paragraph,
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Dear Dawn,
I’m amazed at how many stories there are out there. Just when I think I’ve heard it all, another comes to my attention. Horribly tragic, but proof of the indomitable human spirit. Thank you
Shalom,
Rochelle
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The smile and the lie that open this story are so convincing, which makes the result all the more chilling. It begs the question, how could they?, knowing full well what they we doing.
You tell us so much – we can see the gas chambers, feel the child’s fear, and you provoke us to think. So well done.
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Dear Sarah Ann,
How could they? Indeed. Yet they did…again and again. 😦 Thank you so much for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Dear Rochelle,
With a few short words you brought to the forefront the agony of a young life snuffed out by an evil borne of ignorance and hate. The mother in me feels the excruciating pain of her loss of control and watching her child die. I actually teared up as the little boy screamed his final words. This is fantastic and tragic all at the same time.
Sincerely, Renee
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Dear Renee,
I,too, am a mother. I’ve often envisioned this happening to my own boys and it makes me stand up and cry out, “Never again!” Your tears are my fave review. Thank you, my friend.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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A wonderful tribute to those who were lost during that horrible chapter in history, and a reminder for us to never forget! I know it must have been difficult for you to write, but so glad you did.
Tearfully yours,
Brenda
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Dear Brenda,
These stories are difficult to write, but I feel the compulsion to keep writing them. Thank you for reading and recognizing that.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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You bought the world’s darkest times in 100 words! Powerful piece. Sad but very well said. I was in Germany last Summer and some of the stories should have never happened.
https://trailbrooklane.blogspot.com/2018/05/the-boots.html?_sm_au_=iVV1qsjVFVnfnJDq
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Dear Jaya,
I’ve never been to Germany, although I’ve often thought about going and touring the camps. At the same time I think it would be difficult. Thank you for your kind words.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Tragic, Rochelle and so well told. I believe these events (not stories) have to be told and remembered for two reasons. Firstly to honour those who died so cruelly and secondly because remembering is the only way it might not happen again.
Thank you for writing and sharing. It can’t have been easy, but it is necessary.
Hope you have a wonderful weekend 🙂
Lucy.
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Dear Lucy,
The stories tear me up, honestly. I visited the Holocaust museum in Jerusalem in 2006 with a group. There are things I saw that I can’t speak of without breaking down. At the same time, when inspired, these are stories I have to write. I guess my way of saying, “Never again!”
Thank you for your kind and affirming comments.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Very tragic and very well written too, Rochelle.
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Many thanks, Neel. 😀
Shalom,
Rochelle
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After reading this, my entry isn’t worthy. Brought me to tears!!!!
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Dear Donna,
I read your story. Don’t sell yourself short. 😉 But, thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Chilling and heart-wrenching. What other comment can I offer that won’t sound crass and unworthy…
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Dear TRG,
Thank you for your worthy comment. 😉
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Gut wrenching
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Thank you, Laurie.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Heartbreaking falls far short. Heartbreaking, horrific, haunting. Real. Beautifully told, Rochelle. ❤
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Dear Jan,
We both have our stories to tell, don’t we? ❤ Thank you.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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Chilling! Well written. I guess it’s the truth behind the fiction that makes it so real, right?
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Dear Jen,
The truth in this story is chilling. Sometimes I weep as I write, but the truth must be told and continue to be told. Thank you so much for reading and commenting.
Shalom,
Rochelle
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