War stories, particularly of World War II, keep me both enthralled and horrified. I thought the human race had learned lessons from the dark times of our history, but alas, it is not so, going by the present state of affairs.

Hence, the movie, White Bird- a Wonder story about the times, Jews were rounded up by the Nazis, kept me both horrified and strangely happy with the way kindness, love, and decency are portrayed amidst such hatred and rage. A young Jewish girl, Sara Blum, escapes from the Nazi soldiers when they come up to round up the Jewish Children from the school. She is saved by her classmate, who is afflicted by polio. He is nicknamed Tourteau, which means crab in French. He is either bullied or ignored by all, including this girl who has it so good that she fails to notice what is happening around her. When the small town in France falls under Nazi control, it is only a matter of time before she loses her home, is separated from her parents, and is forced to go into hiding with the help of this kind boy and his family. They hide her in their attic, and in my opinion, the most poignant scene was the one where he tells her to call him by his given name instead of the cruel nickname. She hesitates because she doesn’t know his name till then. Julian becomes such an integral part of her hiding that later her grandson is also named after the boy who kept her safe during the war. People can be cruel, sometimes unnecessarily so, and it takes effort to be kind.  I often wonder how one person could make an entire nation turn against a race, a community, and bring about such horror against the people, causing heinous crimes against them. It makes me wonder at the impotency showcased by the decent others. Where was Vive l’humanite when you have young and old succumbing to propaganda?

And that brings us to the word Impotency. The term “Etymology” is the study of the origin of words.  The practice of etymology is uncovering the truth by tracing the root of a word.

The word impotence is derived from the Latin word impotencia, which can be literally translated into “lack of power.”  It is more popularly used to denote erectile dysfunction and is sexual in nature. However, it is often used for lack of strength or power, and is associated with being weak or feeble. Going by the present scenario all around, except for armchair debating on the sad state of world affairs, or social media trolling or banter, the majority of human beings feel silenced, irrelevant, impotent, and totally helpless amidst hatred, war, and loss. Isn’t it sad that we didn’t learn from history? Silence has never been golden.

hosted by Cindy D’Silva and Noor Anand Chawla.

Image credit: AI

source:

https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/impotent