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7 January 1921 | A Czech Jew, Pavel Friedmann, was born in Prague.
Pavel was deported to Auschwitz from Theresienstadt ghetto on 29 September 1944. He did not survive.
In Theresienstadt ghetto in 1942 he wrote a poem "Butterfly". Read it below.
@auschwitzmuseum did he write in English or another language?
P.S. never forget
@jonaskosak He wrote it in Czech:
Ten poslední ten zcela poslední
tak sytě hořce oslnivě žlutý
snad kdyby slunce slzou zazvonilo o bílý kámen
taková taková žluť
vznášel se lehce tak do vysoka
šel jistě jistě chtěl políbit svět svůj poslední
na sedmý týden tu žiji
ghettoisiert
mí mě tu našli
pampelišky tu na mne volají
i bílá větev v dvoře kaštanu
motýla jsem tu neviděl
ten tenkrát byl poslední
motýli tady nežijí
v ghettu.
@auschwitzmuseum I remember reading this poem as a child.
@auschwitzmuseum
Thank you very much for the lovely post! ... Do you also have the Czech version of the poem? I suppose he didn't write it in English, did he?
@MarleneMeuer
This is the original:
Ten poslední ten zcela poslední
tak sytě hořce oslnivě žlutý
snad kdyby slunce slzou zazvonilo o bílý kámen
taková taková žluť
vznášel se lehce tak do vysoka
šel jistě jistě chtěl políbit svět svůj poslední
na sedmý týden tu žiji
ghettoisiert
mí mě tu našli
pampelišky tu na mne volají
i bílá větev v dvoře kaštanu
motýla jsem tu neviděl
ten tenkrát byl poslední
motýli tady nežijí
v ghettu.
Thank you so much!! 
@auschwitzmuseum Pavel Friedmann's poem, "Butterfly", was translated into Hebrew by Lea Goldberg, one of Israel's greatest poets. Pavel was murdered upon arrival at Auschwitz, according to his friend, Shlomo Schmidt, because he had a bandage on his hand after a light injury he had suffered a few days earlier. (Source, Wikipedia in Hebrew)
We must #NeverForget. #NeverAccept evil. #NeverAgain.
@auschwitzmuseum Thank you for sharing. I’ve been reading this poem to my students for more than 20 years. Just shared it again yesterday. It is powerful every single time.
Forty years ago, I played the role of Pavel in a high school production of the play “I Never Saw Another Butterfly,” taking its title from the book of poems (including this one) secretly written by the children at Theresienstadt.
Above the gates to Theresienstadt were the words “Work makes us free.” In this book of poems, Raja Englanderova expresses to the contrary, “Goodbye makes us free.”
Freedom is difficult to take for granted when goodbye is not a choice.
@auschwitzmuseum In 1977 my #Townsville (northern rural Australia) high school put on the Play “I never saw another butterfly”. It was an experience that shaped all of our lives.
@auschwitzmuseum Never forget.