By Kareen King, Registered Drama Therapist

May 2 was Holocaust Remembrance Day. Not one of those feel good experiences, but definitely plenty of material to draw from in terms of creating a “golden experience” for the residents.

I began our experience  by asking the residents what words came to mind when they heard the word, “Holocaust” (which, by the way, means “sacrifice by fire”).

“Jews,” “horror,” “terrible,” “Hitler,” “concentration camps,” and “gas” were just a few of the responses. The most interesting adjective, however, was “upside-down.”

Some of the most moving moments included the listening of the song, “When I am Silent,” about a girl in Auschwitz as well of the recitation of some poems written by the boys from The Republic of Skid, a “ghetto” of the Holocaust.

Some of the most humorous moments came when I demonstrated how a person’s status can be revealed in the way he walks. Borrowing from a Bertolt Brecht technique, I walked in and around the residents, leading with a different body part each time. I then asked the residents what conclusions they might draw about a person who walks in such a given manner.

This, by the way, would be a fun activity to involve other staff members and caregivers in. With the residents arranged in a semi-circle, have “actor” volunteers walk across the floor, one leading with his stomach, another with his shoulders, another with his feet, another with his head, and finally one with his nose. You are guaranteed to get a lot of chuckles.

This was an important and fun exercise to demonstrate how human beings are prone to create social hierarchies and schisms based on physicality. Hitler, for example, targeted not just Jewish people, but also Gypsies, homosexuals, Jehovah’s Witnesses, and the disabled for persecution.

As we reflected on the poetry, music, and status walk demo’s, I remembered a personal childhood story which I told the residents. It goes like this:

When I was in the third grade, I was quite shy, but cute. If I had been shy and ugly, there would have been no question I would have been deemed at the bottom rung of the social ladder. But, since I was cute, but shy, I was sort of in limbo.

The moment of truth, however, came one winter day on the school playground in International Falls, Minnesota where I grew up. There stood a mountain of snow with a group of popular girls parading around on the top of it, inviting only those of their choosing to join them.

I was standing on the ground alongside my friend, Dawn, a shy and somewhat odd classmate who wasn’t all that cute.

“Hey Kareen!” the ringleader, Carol called out. “Do you wanna come up here with us?” she invited.

“Can Dawn come too?” I asked.

“No,” she replied, forcing me to make a no-win decision.

I knew that this was my only chance to become part of the inner circle, yet I didn’t want to abandon Dawn.

Tormented, I stood deliberating over the options for several seconds. In the end, I chose Dawn, knowing it cost me a rare opportunity to be a part of the “in” crowd.

At the end of our time together, I concluded with my usual routine of shaking hands with each resident and thanking them for coming.

“You moved me to tears,” thanked one of the ladies.

And that’s when I knew that this wasn’t just another activity, but an experience that touched the whole being. And that’s The Golden Experience.