THE SHREDDED LAMB
Mary ate some shredded lamb
Was there a hecksher?
No
And everywhere that Mary went
here aveira was sure to
go
Her grandmother waited 6 hours
between the kid
and its mother's feta
But that's so "old shul"
in these days of fast-food souvlaki
Hamas and Eric Yoffie
Ahmadinejad and Marvin Schick
where our communities
change rabbis like underpants
and applaud giving Holy Land
to our enemies
And everywhere that Harry went
Halakhah was sure to
blow
but I digress
The Baal Teshuvah's path
is a winding maze
toward the reward
of contracted light
Won't you follow him
through the trials
of fire and water
to the perfection
of mitzvos and Ahavas Yisrael?
HaShem is awaiting your arrival
TAKE THIS MAN
Take this man
and turn him into a poem
that dances for You
to the music You put in his heart
He wants to hear
the words You write there
Will his eyes know
what to listen to first?
He wants to hitch a ride
on Your chariot to Shamayim
before it's too late
Please take him
with You to Geulah
Galus's sinister smile
lurks around every corner
Peace in his heart
comes in such small pieces
Only You, HaShem,
can provide the glue
to make him whole
NO MUSIC
We afflict ouselves today
and remember thousands of years
of fallen brothers
and sisters and hold
our breath in anticipation
of another decimation to our nation
Our physical connection
to the Shechinah
has been destroyed in the squandering
of our Exodus
the rubble of our Temples
our evictions from Spain, Britain
the first trainload to Auschwitz
We pray for geulah today
ours but not HaShem's
We will continue to win
a losing battle
until we ask in the right way
Then we will be given
the return of the Shechinah
in the hands and heart
of Mashiach
to be placed on
HaShem's holy altar
TEMPLE
I rise above the smoke and ash
in the easy rhythm
of your love's embrace
The stars' twinkle
in your eyes
releases me
from the noise in the void
Lay with me
on the forest's floor
We'll sing tehillim to Shamayim
niggunim to the Or Ein Sof
and laugh
with the birds' replies
The sun shines in our hearts
through the heavy threat
of snow white clouds
You touch me
in the air we breathe
I hear your neshamah call
from miles apart
Come home to me
Come home
MOUNTAIN DANCE
As the sun rises over the tree line
children of HaShem are thankful for another chance
to breathe the wealth of His Chesed
till the field of His Tzedek
sow the produce of His Emes
May I have this dance?
The music of our lives
is the rhythm of our souls
the best we can hope for
on short notice
Love is the blood
that courses through our veins of faith
the song that soothes nightmares
Dance with me
It's my last chance to show
what 2 right feet can do
How do you love so much
the incessant dichotomy
that shares your bed?
How hard must worlds collide
before the chaff falls away?
How soft must kisses be
before they pierce stone?
May I have this howdown dance?
Maybe the band will play
a swingin' shuffle next
Just don't bop your head off
before you lay it down
to rest to pray to dream
of a peaceful home
a hide-away from the frenzy
The dance steps are lighter
more agile and free
on the mountain where silence breathes a smile
Come dance on the mountaintop with me
POEM FROM GEHINNOM
Out of the depths of Gehinnom
screams a poem
we can dosey-do to
so swing your Betzelem Elokim
on down to the comfy chairs
to hear this boogie
that shuffles off
to I forget where
No illusions there
No visions either
I remember how
your life of agelessness
committed the crime
of perpetual youth
happy with your sadness
Waltz on over
to clean breathing
in clear thought
and listen to His Shechinah proclaim
"I'm here!" to tango with you
through the thickness of the night
the thinness of the morning light
HaShem is rock-&-roll!
MORDECHAI'S DAY AT THE BEACH
The brightness of Your surf
sings in that place in my soul
where the past rides the wave
of the future
Automatic men in my memory
smile at the beauty
of this hidden beach of stone
It's been a long time
since I've been home
among the noisemakers
drowning out the name
of our malicious enemy
of long ago
I can feel the first
niggun of my rebirth
welling up in my chest
closed eyes rocking around
the farbrengen table
Wine and stronger push
us to our dancing feet
and swinging arms
to enlighten our celebration
of knowing no difference
between good and evil
a confirmation of our confusion
only the knowledge of HaShem
can assuage
ELECTROCUTED TEARS
The world in here
HaShem out there
One and the same
is miles apart
Changes don't reconcile
every day alone
with You alone
the space between togetherness
And yet I try to live
without a cloud encompassing
If only this window faced
the black west
sometimes blue
If I cried my tears
would sound like yours
A guitar with no strings
remembers how to sing
Love endures
a mouth faster than eyes
a mind quicker than pen
a smiling portrait of decay
Incomplete Efrayim
is my name in rare places
I am kelipas nogah
brighter than a rasha
much less than a beinoni
If we wash our hands
and breathe our kepittel
our love becomes answered tefillah
If we don't
we give birth
to an empty questioned nefesh
TOMORROW WILL SPARKLE
Tomorrow will sparkle
in preparation for Shabbos
a prelude to harmony
a song at the edge of bliss
Here comes the Queen
her crown of radiance
protected by a snood
CREATION FROM NOTHING
My thanks for a new day
rises with the sun
Modeh ani lefanechah
Our way is lit by promise
Melech chai vekayam
Happy mornings in prayer
are beauty reborn
She-asah li kol tzarki
my head and arm wrapped
in bands of leather meditation
Hareini mikabel Shema Yisrael
Now I'm prepared
to face the dance of the world
head above heart
in joyful calmness
Will you come with me?
You need only say "yes"
and HaShem will lead your way
to leave the shackles
of Mitzrayim behind
one day at a time
FROM THIS DAY FORWARD
Before the movement of sky
before the height of trees
before the songs of birds and frogs
before the heat and light of fire
before my growing faith in HaShem
I pledge my life and love to you
ONE CHILD
If one 45-year-old child voiced a prayer
and was joined by 4 more
it would be
loud
If 16 more children spoke to HaShem
and 64 more came along
it would be
louder
If 144 adults listened to the chant
and sand along with 576 bubbes and zaydes
it would be
deafening
If the child's prayer reached thousands
and millions raised their voices to the sky
it would be
awakening
If the whole earth shouted to Shamayim
in just one voice the child's prayer for the world would be
answered
and Mashiach would come
