Tattoos - Vivian Kapusta - "A Sad Time!"

Here is the Story ... A sad time!

I wasn’t in school like the big kids. 

There was an old man who came to live next door. He always looked sad …
but he would smile when he saw me.
So … we sat on the front steps while he carved little wood animals.
We would play a game called NAME.
He would point, I said the name and he repeated the word until he said it right.
He often worked around the yard and on a hot day he had his sleeves rolled up.
There were numbers on his arm ... he quickly rolled his sleeve down ...
he was sad again and went inside.

I asked my mom, ‘why?’ She looked sad and said, ‘Never mind’.
I asked my dad ... he said, “It’s about the war …”
The next time I saw the old man, he took a photo out of his pocket.
It was a pretty lady and a little blond girl, about my age.
He pointed and said, “Lost ”. His face was sad.
We moved shortly after. I carried those memories and over the years,
I came to understand. He wasn’t old, he had spent years in a work camp.
His wife and daughter were taken away during WW II.
Tattoos make me sad ... I don’t like to look at them.

I was uncomfortable with this subject ... didn't understand why.
I started it many times and then, a memory from my childhood came forward.
I had not thought about it for years.