Kowel; Testimony and Memorial Book

The great destruction of our days has created a background for the growth of legends, similar to the legends in the Talmud. In our book there are chapters about the destruction which should be placed together with the legends in the Talmud about the razing of the Temple. I must say that these legends are even more frightening than those of the Talmud.

The completion of the book is now a gravestone for a great community that is no longer here. The sun has set on our town. Our dear people are gone. Everything is now covered in ashes-. There are now sandhills where our homes stood and lives are snuffed out. All signs of life are erased. Trees that had grown for centuries are cut down and the shadows of death are hanging over the ruins. Our town had existed for over five hundred years.

All the families of Kovel that had lived and rejoiced together are now gone, destroyed. The nests with their birds and goslings are ruined. The world continues as before. The stars in heaven are still shining. The fields of Kovel are still producing and blossoming. The birds are singing, the streams are flowing slowly. At night there are still boats with riders. However, the voices have changed. We no longer hear the sounds of our young men and women. Our children do not sing magnificent songs. The bones of our youth are rotting in the cemetery on the other side of the river. Young hearts have stopped beating and young people no longer eye the blue sky as they sing. Our laughter and happiness are snuffed out forever.

The roads of Kovel are in mourning. The atmosphere is filled with sadness and sorrow for the beautiful people that were felled by the murderers. There is no God in this place. The heavenly spirit has been exiled together with its Jews. Gone and destroyed are the numerous houses of learning that were full of this exalted essence. The Torah scrolls are burned and have disappeared with their letters.