Reminder

Attended the Holocaust Memorial Day Shabbat Civic Service at the Glasgow Reform Synagogue this morning and at the end of the service there was a buffet and a chance to mingle. In the hall was this chair, which had been specially made by John McLaughlin MBE (The Govan Chairman) to commemorate the Holocaust.

The back of the chair is an hourglass that contains 6,000,000 poppy seeds and when the back is rotated the poppy seeds pour through the hourglass in to the bottom section. The very top of the chair is a representation of the Menorah, which is the oldest symbol of Judaism. However the top of each of the candlesticks has been carved into a thistle to represent the connection between Scotland and the Jewish people who came here fleeing persecution.

Given it is the 25th January I was intending to do a blip connected to Robert Burns, but even though this is not a good photo I decided to blip this reminder of the evil that was done to the Jews by the Nazis. However at the same time it also represents a reminder of the real contribution that Jewish people have made and continue to make to present day Scotland.