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We walked silently through Amsterdam’s streets; this was an unexpected last-minute invitation.
Recreation was my original intention.
Arriving at Weesperplein, my initial impression was how sparse the numbers in the square were,
I immediately inferred that the majority did not care.
Surely, the numbers should be significantly larger with all that is currently happening in the world, indifference we should no longer harbour or consider.
I initially thought that the match was a general match for peace,
Alas, I was unaware of this recent cultural ritual,
My friend arrived and informed me that at least fifty such events were happening nationwide.
We listened to dignitaries; the former mayor recited a moving poem.
Soon after, a line of four drummers started playing a slow lament,
All others were silent,
The march proceeded through the city,
my friend informed me that the route of the march went through significant former Jewish locations.
The march started at the former Jewish quarters,
The marchers walked past the Dutch Holocaust Memorial,
Inscribed in each brick in the sculpture was the name of a victim of the…