They were told they were subhuman, part of this group of people they wanted to erase. To live and to love were acts of defiance… They hid to save their lives, they hid their children to save their love. Discovered, arrested – lovers separated in the crowd of deportation, then arrival, at Westerbork Transit Camp in 1943… left alone in the midst of earthly upheaval… People dressed smartly wearing hats and coats in July, each carrying a bag of personal belongings, their requisite “Stars of David” sewn visibly onto their coats identifying them as Jewish…

 

He sees her! His wife, his life… He hurries to her as she approaches. She sees him! He wraps his arms around her in embrace, they look into each other’s eyes. They kiss. A long kiss as a guard looks on…  A kiss of love, safety, protection, of parents being sent to their deaths after leaving their children in hiding. A last moment of bold affection, a moment of humane defiance in the face of the storm.