My Parents’ Wedding

My parents in the concentration camp
met for the first time
My father disguised himself as a
woman and sneaked into the barracks
of the young bride
And there, secretly, their wedding was held

When they lay on her bunk
Suddenly the warning was heard
that the Nazis arrived by surprise
To check if men entered unnoticed
Through the entrance gate.

My mother’s friends
Who they loved
Lay over him
Covering him
And that’s how they protected him
Even though they risked their lives
And the Nazis did not see him

It’s hard for me to imagine the
fear That came over him
When he was saved from the Germans

And I think
That it was only with the help of God!


Clila Bau-Cohen

Clila Bau-Cohen is the daughter Rebecca and Joseph Bau who were married in Barracks 13, the women’s barracks of Plaszow Concentration Camp in Poland. The wedding had barely ended when the SS arrived to comb the camp for men who had snuck into the women’s barracks for the wedding, beating to death the wedding guests. Joseph lied on top bunk covered with a pile of rags serving as a quaking pillow for his wife and later escaped.