wednesday's words and wanderings and wonderings

The Cincinnati Museum Center was once home to the bustling Union Terminal train station. Currently the exhibit "Auschwitz. Not Long Ago. Not Far Away." is the featured  exhibit in this stunning structure. After WWII many Jews from all over Europe emigrated to Cincinnati and arrived at this beautiful building to rebuild their lives as Holocaust survivors. Last week, Todd and I took a trip down the construction laden I-75 to the Museum Center and spent three hours walking through one of history's darkest periods.

Upon entering the exhibit, the first thing we encountered was a red shoe in a glass case placed in front of a large mural of shoes. This red shoe was one of many shoes found in the Auschwitz warehouses after liberation. This bright colored lady's shoe placed in front of the mural that was a sea of worn and dark-colored footwear served as a poignant and deeply personal item that instantly connected visitors with the human stories behind the overwhelming statistics of 1.3 million deportees. 

Benches - either to rest one's feet, to process what one just seen, to watch a video, or to reflect on the atrocities - were supplied with tissue boxes. 

This was the very last message before exiting "Auschwitz." Visitors had participated in an ongoing remembrance and left with a responsibility to combat hate and violence.

Back to dreary Dayton...last week it rained hard almost every day and we were taking care of our son's dog. All the rain brought out lots of worms that needed to escape the water-saturated soil. The dog was curious and while he'll eat most anything, he stayed away from a worm snack.

After the rain comes the most welcome blue sky. These are the Carillon Bells, which if you remember from some December posts, this is the bell tower that is turned into the giant Tree of Lights. A few puddles lined the road and as I drove past my brain went into whatever gear: puddles, bell tower, reflections, so I stopped and took a few "Reflections on a Late Winter's Day" photos.