As with any photo, there is a story behind it. It turns out neither the guy about to die, nor the executioners are anyone I'd associate with. The guy was a member of the German Communists who were defeated, rounded up and executed in 1919. The armed squad were German Socialists, who would eventually give rise to the National Socialists. You probably remember them as the Nazi Party. All of that being what it is, this photo still says so much. The young man is defiant. He looks less scared than some of those holding rifles to me. The message I get from this photo is, you could not kill my spirit, so you are forced to kill me instead.
Now I certainly hope I'm never put into a position like this, nor anyone else for that matter, but I wish more people had this man's attitude right now. Stand for what you believe in!
This photo reminded me of another historical photo that speaks to me in a very similar way.
In this huge crowd of people who may either believe in whatever Nazi propaganda they are hearing or not, there is one guy who is not capitulating. All of the others have given up. Not him. He stands there with his arms crossed just daring anyone to question why he is not saluting. There almost seems to be a human buffer around him because no one wants to be mistaken as being with him. Maybe they just want to avoid the errant shot. Whatever the reason, they stand in support of something that he perceives as evil. He is the only one willing to stand for what he believes in. Granted, some of the crowd may have been taken in, but almost all of them seem to be civilians. Most civilians at that time still held that status because they had not joined the Nazi party. That is what leads me to my conclusion that he is one of the few that is standing for what he truly believes. We don't know the exact fate of this man, but we do know this. Live or die, he had courage.
That brings me to one more photo that I absolutely love.
I know nothing about the history of this photo except that it appears to be from World War 2. I have imagined what appears obvious. The soldier being carried was wounded to the point of not being able to walk. He has also lost his rifle, either literally or from lack of ammunition or the ability to fire it. His buddy gave up his ability to fight in order to carry him, who knows how far, through ankle deep mud while still being accosted by the enemy. The injured soldier returns fire with his side arm.
This photo speaks to me on a couple of levels. First, you are not out of the fight until you are no longer able to fight. Never give up! Second, never leave a man behind. This guy is risking his own life to save his injured comrade. This photo is one of my favorites from World War 2. There are a lot of great photos out there, some depicting some incredibly important, transcendent and historical moments, but this one tells an incredible story.
All three of these photos speak loudly to the value of human spirit. In the face of some of the most horrible situations men have ever faced and most of humanity will never face, courage shined through. We should take these example and be inspired by them. What our nation is facing right now is bad, no doubt about that. Are we, as individuals, facing situations as perilous as these four guys though? Well, that is debatable. In the present, probably not. But if we don;t have the courage to stand up fpr what we believe in, for what believe to be right, then we may as well be facing the same thing these guys faced. If we don;t stand now, we may actually face something like this in the future. I'm not trying to be an alarmist, but I would bet that none of these men felt they would have to face what they are facing in these photos 5 years before they were taken. I would imagine, based on these photos, if they did know what they would be facing, they would have stood even more firm in resistance.
I don't know about you, but if there is a way to turn things around by standing up now for what I believe in, I find that much more appealing than having to stand up the way these men did, after the fact. You may not feel that you need to stand up now, but I wonder what you'll feel if you ever have to stand and face what these men faced. I much prefer the former over the latter.
Abraham Lincoln had something to say about this. Consider these two quotes and then determine for yourself, where and how you stand.
Be sure you put your feet in the right place, then stand firm.
I am not bound to win, but I am bound to be true. I am not bound to succeed, but I am bound to live by the light that I have. I must stand with anybody that stands right, and stand with him while he is right, and part with him when he goes wrong.
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