renewal – Breathing Inspiration

Slumbering Eyes

Wake up to the truth,
grant awareness to thyself.
The will of the Maker is done
each and every morning
under the sun.

Without the wisdom from Above,
our eyesight will dim over the years,
and eyes squint in the morning light;
yet, in anticipation of the renewal of the earth we wait,
renewed not by the hands of man –
rather, from Heaven’s glance.

Let me see the continuity
of Your blessings bestowed upon the land,
as the rejuvenation of the planet occurs,
guided by Your divine will,
the waters glistening on the surface,
the trees nourished by rich soil
that springs up in the deserts
when all of creation is healed.

Window of Vision

A window into time,

is challenging to rhyme,

bringing past, present, and future

together into harmony…

Whenever I reflect upon my heritage,

I am transported back to the shtetl

of my ancestors on my father’s side of the family.

Especially, on Yom HaShoah, the day of remembrance

elicits bittersweet emotions.

On the one hand, at least twenty-eight

members of two families perished.

On the other hand, two other families

immigrated to the goldene medina,

bringing forth several generations

of Yidden, who know their heritage

to a greater or lesser degree,

upon the continuum of faith.

Gazing into the future,

I see the final generation

standing in its tenacity

against the tides of change,

and the storms of fear,

that are upon the horizon.

In expectation of Moshiach,

I wait for his arrival, here –

Ad mosai?

Existing in the present,

I try not to get caught up in the turmoil,

nor thrown off balance by the daily news,

that seems to be narrating prophecy

in real-time sound bytes, some confused,

on the way toward the final countdown

of the Geulah (Redemption).

Take heart, I say to my soul,

in the things that you know

will not fail, nor perish –

everlasting life, waiting

right outside the window,

after the Tehillas HaMeisim,

into another time –

eternity.

dVerse prompt

Always Remember

You tell me it’s the institution… well you know, you’d better free your mind instead.
Revolution, by the Beatles

As the earth revolves,

does the mind evolve?

Do morals matter?

Is the soul in tatters?

Calling for a revolution

will not bring an evolution

of humankind to fruition.

For, if we abandon our past,

nothing that matters will last,

as tyranny holds fast.

dVerse prompt

Silent Voices

Judge not lest you be judged in turn,
Appearances cloud our view,
We guess at the truth, but only learn
G-d alone knows what is true.
Edith Stein, from Aphorisms in the Month of June 1940

We see this world in a topsy turvy way,

where right is wrong, and left has gone astray.

Foundations once safe and sound,

have fallen upon the ground.

How long can we watch, and remain quiet,

while evil is reframed as good,

and the righteous are silenced?

—– —– —–

One fine day we will sing,

when all of G-d’s mercies will bring

a lasting peace upon this world,

as Messiah’s flag is unfurled.

Until then, we sit and wait,

hope and pray beyond fate,

that when the bright morning will dawn,

the light will accompany G-d’s Kingdom.

Something Sublime is Needed

We are determined –

all of us who look to a brighter day –

to see things our way,

instead of submitting

to the King of the World,

Who will give us direction,

capture our attention,

and bring us to our destiny.

We, who strive to create a life,

based on a mix of love and strife,

wanting to change those around us,

by pointing the finger at others,

and blaming the institutions of society.

Yet, disregarding the divine blueprint

of our heritage as a people of faith,

tradition, and the words inscribed

on the two Tablets of Stone

given to Moses on Sinai.

We have lost our way,

as the world in turmoil sways

to and fro, in moral chaos,

while the best of us fret,

and regret what we have not yet done,

to correct ourselves, through tikkun hanefesh,

a rectification of the soul,

with so little time left.

Starseeds

Connect the dots
between your values and emotions,
making a string of your deeds,
in alignment with the seeds
of renewal and rebirth,
storing gems in heaven,
for all to see, like the stars
that light up the nighttime sky.

note to reader: poem by a human being

image by Craiyon A.I. image generator

Golden Country

“I will restore My people Israel from captivity.”

– Amos 9:4

Across the generations,

our spirit has been crushed in every nation.

Even now, the Mother of Exiles

is becoming a harlot, like unto Babylon,

leaving us to ponder upon the wisdom of Daniel,

in acknowledgment of our status,

as exiles from the Promised Land.

The dreams of our ancestors,

who looked in hope toward

the distant shoreline of the Goldene Medina,

have been mixed with the alchemy of culture

that threatens to replace the values,

instilled in them by our heritage,

that brought inspiration in the Old Country.

The shift from a common bond,

amongst our own brethren

occurred in front of our very eyes,

as we were disguised from ourselves,

by the lies and factions we upheld,

rather, than honoring our covenantal unity

within the fractured diversity of K’lal Yisrael.

The aftermath

of an overemphasis on gashmiyos,

and a decreasing allegiance to ruchniyos,

coupled with assimilation into the melting pot,

is made visible in the diminishment

of our religious identity,

until the time when our renewal

is at hand.

Bare Earth

This barren landscape of the mind,

where time renews only those who have hope

in the ways of the ancient past

treaded by the sages of ages that still last

for the sake of the preservation of our heritage;

this bare earth, devoid of nourishment

soil, depleted by the wars that have wasted the land,

and the shores of distant beaches,

where the sands of time drift into the sea;

even the biosphere cries out on behalf of the world,

to renew the manifold aspects of creation –

mankind, the task begins with us,

through the renewal of the soul.

Soul, Awake

Oh, to be as bold as a lion,

when I wake in the morning

with a roar instead of a yawn.

Receiving what the day will bring,

to my attention as I sing out,

in solemn gratitude, modeh ani,

for my soul restored anew.

dVerse prompt

A Heart Transformed

Oh, ruinous soul,
shall you continue in your negativity?
The threads are bare, exposing your despair,
consuming even the sparks of hope,
that need time to be fanned into flames
of promise for renewal in your life.

—– —– —– —– —–
What of strife? It serves no purpose,
unless transcended when the challenge is met.
What of worldly comfort? (Never to be of avail
to the uncomfortability of a restless soul).
What of love? That can only flourish
in a heart transformed by G-d alone.