Poetry
I have been writing poetry since I was about 10 years old, it is something I do often for myself, but I love when I am able to share my passion as part of prayer services or moments of need in our community. Below are a few examples of poems I have written and been able to use in various forms in Jewish spaces.
A Modern Eishet Chayil
A woman of valor is one of a kind,
Valued for her wisdom, ambition and mind
Eishet chayil is well balanced in heels and in life,
She is a compassionate person, friend, mother and wife
A woman of valor is passionate in all that she tries,
She empowers and brightens others lives
Eishet chayil does it all,
Running a business and taking care of a family, no task is too tall
Don’t be fooled by these flawless traits,
She ‘s vulnerable, asks questions and even makes mistakes.
Her pride and glory come from inside,
She exudes confidence and voice that reaches wide
She stands up to the challenge no matter the way,
She always has faith tomorrow is a new day
She’s always there to listen with patience and a hug,
But knows when to take a break and unplug
She finds a way to bring the community together,
Creating ties that will not sever
She walks with grace but sometimes falls,
And is not afraid to laugh at herself when the time calls
A woman of valor could be old or young,
She has words of wisdom and kindness on her tongue
She speaks mindfully and holds herself with sophistication,
She works and lives with drive and dedication.
Don’t question where or who?
She’s your sister, your neighbor, she’s a woman like you.
Soaring into the Barchu
Bending at the knees
Lowering our heads
Like birds ready to take a first flight
Our call to prayer is composed
Like a leap
A leap into prayer
Into liturgy
Into reflection
We bend our knees like a bird
peeking beyond its nest
and we respond with a call
we are ready
we are here
at the edge
we leap into flight on our wings
but with a lifting breeze of Havya
and an extra gust of the kehillah
we prep
we sing
we leap
into flight
into prayer.
City of Stone: An Ode to Jerusalem
City of stone
The rosemary and fig trees
Fight their way through your cracks
Life
Digging its way around your earthly tablets
City of stone
You retain the cold
The temperature
Of the evening
Is caught in your crevices
For days
No years
No centuries to come,
Your crevices withhold
A temperament
Of desert days
City of stone
You take practice to walk on
You build cautious sidewalks
And fatalities of steps
Your pathways
Uneven
Line hills
That roll
Into the horizon
City of stone
I run my hands
Over your walls
I can feel the fragility
Buried in indents
From
Wind and rain
Destruction and beath-
I run my hands
Across your stones,
Because your walls are high
Retaining centturies of strength
Does not mean
You are any less
A city of home
Bless Me to be Enough
Bless me to be enough
Like each rustle of the leaf in the woods
Each broken branch
Crashing to the ground
And each strong breeze
That only adds to the harmony of the forest
Bless each bit of chaos within
And around me
To add to the harmony
Of this body
And this moment
God, grantt me your breath of life
And bless me to know
I am enough.
Prayer After the Tree of Life Shooting in Pittsburgh
I pray for Shabbat
They say it has kept the Jewish people
And on this Shabbat
People no longer stand,
A peace has been stolen.
I pray
For a community
For a people
Holding fast to their tradition
For the holy lives
Fallen out of hate
I pray
For the One
Who left people behind
To mourn
Forced to carry on,
For the One who gives strength
To those beyond the bounds
Of this event
And those that walk among
The pain.
I pray
For the stained temple
The fallen kippot
The pierced prayer book,
I pray
For next Shabbat
For the person
Who will pick up that Kippah
For the child that will walk through those doors
For the family
That will find solace.
All these things,
We pray for.
Evening
Street lights
Beam upon late night sidewalks
Shaded branches glow in
Yellow evening light
A full moon rises above
To stars and endless sky
As shadows fall
To the stone below
Of pavement secured
For blocks to come
And the silhouette of leaves
Line this walk
Like a carpet of night
Among the brightness of
Stepped steady earth.