First we will listen to our Fear.
Today I am told to look to God for company
In my fear but
I am afraid of our new leaders.
I fear the danger pointed at anyone who is not them.
I am afraid for myself, I am afraid for you, I am afraid for everybody.
I am afraid for the future.
And I am afraid for the people who oppose our leaders.
And now we must be strong
And I am not strong.
Then we will only feel our Despair.
The enemy is so strong
And we are divided.
We keep losing
And this is no game.
Lives are ruined,
Animals are going extinct,
The planet is on fire,
Cruelty enjoys itself
And we can’t get away from it.
No distractions work for long.
The grief won’t go away
I think I must say the Kaddish
I think I must say the Kaddish
And properly mourn.
Then…what?
There is a parable in the Sefer Ha-Aggadah,*
The Book of Legends,
About a king who had a beautiful orchard
Which, when he had to leave for a year,
He left in the hands of a keeper.
And when the king returned,
The orchard had been terribly neglected,
Overgrown with thorns and thistles.
He was going to tear the orchard down
But looking down at the thorns
He noticed among them
A rose-colored lily.
And the king said
“Because of this lily, let the entire orchard be spared.”
Listen to the fear and despair and then
Look for all the lilies among the thorns.
Amen
