Cannot Erase Love

I take your medal out of the treasure box every once in a while nestled in between hair locks baby shoes and sepia photographs it portrays a powerful image of glory success victory and loss and reminds me of ambiguities effort strength youth and deception Mom you won the laurels as a young German diving champion summersaulting from the high platform of contest and stealth your only fault was that of living under Nazi rule and contempt for equality diversity human rights minorities and ethical laws But you were still a child in age and at heart innocent and naive jumped into the waters of body and mind as a juvenile protege The Allies wanted to confiscate the reward under Denazification eager to erase evil from history books and the lure in admonition Your father pleaded to let you keep what was yours to cherish earned without ideological stride but competitive dedication and the American officer relented took the badge to a goldsmith to return it once the Svastika had been erased from the trophy When I look at the accolade today I see proud eyes and sadness dust it off at regular intervals and remind myself that all politics are personal and it’s rightly impossible to escape the verdict of time but my love for you has never faded as you rest in heaven and weep 9th March 2021 My Mom was thirteen when she received the medal