Yamim Nora'im

Somewhere, someone is blowing on a shofar
Somewhere, someone is greeting somebody with
"Ah gut gebentched yohr"
                                   Or maybe
                                   "Ketiva VeChatima Tova"

It's the Jewish New Year
The first day of Tishrei
The first of the High Holy Days
                                   Of which
                                   I know very little

It was my senior year of high school
When I met a Jewish person for the first time
He was a substitute teacher for my journalism class
                                   Had a series of numbers
                                   Tattooed on his forearm

I stared at his arm in awe
I was well aware of the Holocaust
Having read Shirer's Rise and Fall of the Third Reich
                                    At my mother's insistence
                                    When I was but 12

The words in that book
The pictures
Remain
One of the most educational experiences
Of my life