The melancholy boy walked down the street,
His life condemned to sorrow
Another life that was monotonous and incomplete
For the boy that had dreaded all tomorrows
Other boys walked beside him
Encumbered with the same fate
And with emaciated limbs
Some dropped to the ground, never reaching the gate
The gate was tall and notorious
For keeping all those boys inside
But the boys were finally victorious
For they had looked on the bright side
The war was over
The Jews were free
One four leaf clover
Under the bitter red and black tree
And then there was me
A Nazi
Filled with apathy
Now having to pay a large fee
For what I have done to these boys
For all that I have destroyed
And that one boy
And that one boy
One of the boys who made it through
Him with brown hair
I with gold
Him with a cold stare
I with bold
Although we were very different
We were much the same
Him with a stiffer scent
I with softer claim
A common father
I used to know that boy so well
Before our family was bothered
With splitting up and saying farewell
Now I am bestial
He is an angel, celestial
The boy walking on the street
His face dirty yet sweet
Walking in front of him
The sage of the group
His face an emblem
For the morale of the troop
Even after the innumerable deaths
These boys seek their pious leader
They catch their breath
To God, they plead
I know what they’re thinking
And what they ask him for
Water for drinking
And to be robust, as before
I was standing by watching them walk
When the boy caught my eye
It felt like a reverie and I wanted to hide under a rock
He ran toward me and I wondered why
Suddenly, I was embraced in a interminable hug
The boy with his arms around my waist
It was then that I felt the guilt of being such a thug
It was then that I felt imperceptibly disgraced
My compatriots made a farce
To them, it was an abominable act
To them, Jews were meant to be scarce
They had tried to make that a fact
But I wrapped my arms around the boy
Disregarding all of the other men
Which the boy seemed to enjoy
I knew because he smiled and whispered, “Amen”
He did not lament for people lost
He was not cynical for what I had been apart of
He was merely exhausted
He simply thanked God above
All the other men around me, devoid of emotions
Annihilating Jews was their only devotion
And then there was me
I had done the same things but the difference was that I could see
I could see that it was wrong
I could see that it was accursed
I was only strong
Out of them all, I was nowhere near the worst
I was blamed
I was shamed
My brother would survive
He would thrive
I would not
