The last day of January is almost over... so here's a manipulation called "Departure". See the connection? *s*. Two photos which were taken at different times and places, and were combined together to convey an idea.

Just having fun here *s*. Happy February all!

Departure

It came to be @ 04:28 PM MT

i-gizmo challenge for today is Snow. Joe took this photo at work, night time. That's all for today *s*.

Snow

It came to be @ 07:48 PM MT

• Driving in the mountains when night is falling and the moon is rising almost full, is one of the magical hours one can experience. We had to stop and give it a try... and let me tell you... I expected to see the shadow of a flying witch passing in front of the moon any minute *s*.

Most of the time we were the only ones on the road, and everything was so quiet. Magic... It was pure magic!

January moon

Full moon over Kananaskis

• Thursday Challenge for January 27, 2005, is Cold.

• Photo Friday challenge for January 28, 2005 is Youth.

It came to be @ 08:03 PM MT

60 years after Auschwitz

60 years ago, today, Soviet troops liberated the Auschwitz - Birkenau concentration camp. This camp will forever remembered in humanity's collective memory as the most notorious of the Nazi death camps.

Psychologists say that when ones life experience is bad, one should move on, look into the future and build new life. "Leave the past behind you", they tell you. "Forget!". It sure doesn't apply in the case of those who survived the Nazi horrors.

And how can they forget? How can a human being go through hell, and then move on with their lives as if nothing happened? So many of the survivors carry a number on their arms, a lasting mark of the horror they went through. And... they also carry one though in their minds: "We have to tell what happened to us. We have to yell it out loud, so the world - and generations to come - will know the truth, learn from it, and won't let something like that happen ever again!"

I'd come to hear stories of the Holocaust first handed from my next-door neighbor. She was a survivor of the Nazi's Auschwitz death camp. She had a number on her arm. Every year, on Holocaust memorial day, my mom and I knew she was falling to pieces under the weight of her memories, and we used to knock on her door and ask her how she was holding up. We knew that she'll tell us the same story... We knew it'll burden our souls tremendously... and we knew that we will go to her, and let her tell it again... because she needed to tell - and by that relive again - the horror.

She was in her teens when WW2 started, and during it, she'd found herself in Auschwitz. The Nazi concentration camp at Auschwitz was liberated by soldiers of the Soviet Union in 1945. There were 1,200 people abandoned to the Russians at Auschwitz. Before the Soviet army got there, the Nazis had ordered 67,000 of the prisoners to march west to other camps. The last of the prisoners to be evacuated were marched out of the camp on the evening of January 18, 1945. This was a "death march" with those who couldn't keep up being shot and left alongside the road. Those who were too young, too old or too sick were left in the camp.

My neighbor walked this Death March... and came out of it alive. She later came to Israel, got married, had 2 kids and grandchildren... but there wasn't one day in her life - according to her - that she didn't relive her experience. She lost her parents and some of her siblings, while other siblings survived as well. Her story, like all those others carried around, had to be told... Had to be heard... Had to be remembered.

Why? as George Santayana said: The one who does not remember history is bound to live through it again. We have to tell and remember, because those who were there and are still alive are few, and they shall too pass. We need to tell and remember, to make sure something like that won't happen ever again! We must ensure the safety of next generations as much as we can.

We need to remember, that even today, there are still people out there who choose to deny this horror ever happened, and they sure have lots of excuses. Then... there are those who'd love to see all Jews gone from the face of the heart. Sadly, many people didn't learn a thing.

A simple search on Google for "Holocaust" produced countless site url's. I've added only few of them here, if you'd like to read and learn:

• The Holocaust chronicle
• A Teacher's Guide to the Holocaust
• Holocaust Survivors
• HopeSite - The Holocaust Education Center
• The Holocaust History Project
• A Cybrary of the Holocaust, Remember.org
• Holocaust Poetry and Art

And also, check here for a list of bloggers who participated in January 27, 2005 BlogBurst regarding Remembering the Wannsee Conference and the Liberation of Auschwitz.

All of us, who were lucky enough to be born after WW2, must remember... tell... and never forget!!!

It came to be @ 01:27 PM MT

Here are few more photos from our last weekend's trip to Canmore. It was a nice day, the cold was mild, and though the skies were dark at times, and the sun only came out occasionally, we managed to take quite few photos we were happy with. The Rockies look even more majestic in winter time, with their white "coat" and clear sharp lines. What a treat!!!

Three sisters under snow blanket

Winter CP scene

Mountain cradle

Icy surface

It came to be @ 05:54 PM MT

i-gizmo challenge for January 22, 2005, was Flag. This photo was taken at Canmore's Nordic center, which was designed and developed for the 1988 Winter Olympic Games. The Canmore Nordic Centre provides exceptional winter cross - country skiing and summer mountain biking experiences. The background view of the mountains makes it even more special to visit.

Flag

Three flags in the mountains

Proud it flutters

It came to be @ 11:59 AM MT

Photo Friday challenge for January 21, 2005 was Crowded. This photo was taken back in July 2004, at the Stampede parade, the opening of the Calgary stampede, the best outdoors show on earth! Talking about crowded... the pavements along the parade's route are packed with people, many thousands of Calgarians plus visitors from all over the world, who get there 3 hours before the parade starts in order to get a good seat. Joe was sitting in the first line of chairs, and clicked the camera like crazy. This is one of the many shots he took that day.

Crowded

It came to be @ 11:31 AM MT