Be Better

We want to understand

We know you have a rationale but

We don’t need that explanation,

Not anymore. 

We just want you to stop.  

This is cruel and brutal.  

There can be no justification

For what you are doing. 

It may no longer matter who hit who first

Or who is more sinned against than sinning. 

Be better. 

Amen

Blessing for the Lunar Month of Adar

It is told to us

That it was on the first day of Adar 

That Moses and God released

The ninth plague,

Darkness,

When no one could see

What was right in front of them.  

It is also told to us

That though this month begins in sorrow,

It ends in joy.

Purim!

When evil people plotted our demise

But we killed them instead. 

I don’t see the joy in that, myself. 

Blessed HaMavdil,

The one who divides,

Creating holiness with separation,
Dividing time into months with the moon,

Reminding us that everything waxes and wanes. 

Amen

Looking for The Holy

 

Blessed Sacred Mystery,

We search for the holy amidst pain 

And memories of pain. 

We touch the divine with our bodies. 

We feel the threats of violence and

We give thanks if we are alive and whole. 

Bless those who are safe. 

We fear for those in danger. 

We mourn for those who are dead or injured.

Bless those who are not safe. 

We must help if we can.

Perhaps that is where we will find

The holy.  

Amen

On My Toes

 

Art by Mike Cockrill

1

In shul Shabbat morning,

After we consider God-ness

Creating light, dark, love, unity and truth,

I stand for the standing prayer,

Legs together 

Like an angel with only one lower limb. 

I sway from side to side,

Seeking a chat with the Sacred Artist.  

2

I stand so I can shuckel,

Rhythmic comfort movements

Side to side

Up and down

Knees bent. 

Voice chanting 

As my body prays

Like an angel dancing in a mosh pit

Hopping with God and the congregation,

Acolytes to the beat of Tefillah 

(And it feels so good). 

3

Then I drop the angel thing

And stand with legs akimbo 

In perfect balance

To safely launch myself into the air three times:

Ecstasy! Sanctity!  Blessing!

God exists forever in this moment. 

Here I am

In holy conversation

And this is an excellent party.  

4

I stand for the need for meaning

When there are no answers. 

I stand for the divine Wholeness

In and around me. 

I stand for the glory of Oneness

From generation to generation.  

I stand for the thousands of years

We have prayed this prayer. 

5

Well, I don’t actually stand,

Not anymore. 

My knees hurt,

My back aches

And walking is easier than standing still. 

Worried about what others might think,

I used to lift up my carcass anyway, 

But all I could pray about was my pain

Which wasn’t enough. 

So now I stay in my chair,

Put the book aside,o

Scootch up to the front of the seat,

Sit up straight 

And pay attention hard. 

6

B’emet,

Sitting there

Slightly impaired,

I’m more aware 

Of my body 

As a vehicle for prayer 

Than ever before.  

On my toes 

In my heart,

I declare,

Holy holy holy!

7

And let us say

Amen. 

Please be seated.

How? A Prayer For Activists for the New Year

Art by Mike Cockrill

This new year is going to be

Difficult to witness and

End-of-the-world frightening,

With cruel enemies

Lacking nuance and compassion. 

How can this be?  

Amidst the brutality and the pain,

Amidst the illness and the injuries,

Amidst the boredom and the lack of sleep,

Amidst the outrage and the frustration,

You sometimes will want to be happy.  

How does that work ?  

But won’t feeling good  be obscene?  

Simple pleasures, selfish?

Should we eat well if others starve?

No more being silly! 

Can we still fall in love?

How did this happen?

Forgive the old for leaving you this mess. 

Know that they were left

Their own mess by their elders. 

Which they tried to repair in their time. 

Sorry, but it’s your turn.  

How will you be kind?

Bless HaMavdil, Creator of Time, 

As we gird our loins

For the battles and horrors to come. 

Help us remember to enjoy our lives

And make sure we get enough sleep,

Don’t ask me how.  

Happy New Year

Amen

Blessings for the New Year

 

May we have a knowing of holy wholeness, and may it know us.

May we understand that we are part of the One and we are complete as we are. 

May our  beginnings and our ends touch and may we, and all the world, know peace.  

Amen

What If We Listen?

 

Blessed One-ness,

Anger is noisy. 

So is revenge, resentment, rage.  

So

What happens if we sit and listen

Not to our first reactions 

Not to our friends 

Not to our leaders

Not to our screens

Not to any of the persistent din

But instead 

What happens if we decide instead 

To humbly listen to a different kind of noise,

To the unsolicited ambient sounds?

First perhaps we hear the birds 

Or the outside traffic then

Children playing,

Dogs barking,

The creaks in our walls 

A distant radio

A honking horn

The wind

The rain

Our breaths.  Our lives. 

Then perhaps, 

if we listen without judgement or preference,

We might hear the noise in the quiet 

Underneath the obvious:

The still small voices,

The mysteries 

Of pain and love

Of nuance and consideration 

Of hard decisions 

Of quiet covenants of obligation and doubt. 

And then beneath even those expressions, 

We hear our own heartbeats and many more,

Of so many different people and

Of so many other species,

All of us

Breathing, eating, making love,

Hoping to have fun and survive. 

We are all  companions in the big mysteries

On our one home, our noisy planet. 

Can we hear all that life?

And if we can, 

How can we dare to interrupt that music?

Amen

My Gratitude

Every Shabbat

I attend services

And almost every single time 

We are asked by the rabbi,

What are you grateful for?

(A reasonable question)

And a long list from the congregation rolls out

Of family members

And pets

And jobs and vacations

And operations and recoveries

And clergy and social justice leaders

And battles fought and won.

I am also grateful

For the usual stuff

But

I hate this question.

I really hate this question.

I am annoyed not grateful.

I am annoyed and not grateful on a daily basis,

I am annoyed and not grateful when I wake up in the morning

and annoyed and not grateful when I go to sleep at night.

This world is a terrible, cruel and stupid place and 

I am angry!

Modeh Ani? Hell no.

Bedtime Shma? I forgive no one!

I am angry

and disputatious

and frustrated

But the people who deserve my anger and resistance

Do not know or care that I exist!

I want it all to go away

And I’m ashamed at how little effort it takes

To ignore the unpleasant 

And do nothing. 

I’m so angry at myself.

So, no gratitude today from me.

And anyway,

The things that I am grateful for 

That you are so curious about,

Why do I have to announce them?

You want me to spread my gratitude all around like manure

In this garden of good vibes?

Feh.

And please, don’t tell me yours,

I am neither interested nor moved by your gratitude!

Except of course I am,

Because I love you and

I like it when people are happy.

And I like it when people share their happiness,

But not on demand!

And not every week.

Not now,

Not this week.

My gratitude is not for tourists.

Sorry.

Holy Wholeness,
Thank you for listening.
Amen