The Distance Between Desert and Water: A Meditation on Mar Heshvan

All these years,
I have been wandering.
Thirsting and hungering,
I have forgotten how loss and bitterness taste.
 
The walk has been winding.
And the path, consuming.
In this place, there are only memories and miles.
The uncertainty of coming and going.
 
And yet, the haze is lifting.
And clarity spilling over me like the rains in one long pour.
 
Except this time. The heavens are not breaking. But me.
Laughing, crying and falling here in the sand.
The cup of my heart running over.
 
They call this time, Mar, the “bitter” month.
And yet. all the world’s nations are called, Mar, “a drop of water from the bucket.”
 
How could these opposites be?
Because the meeting of purpose and pain has always been the secret of Jewish redemption.
And the distance between desert and water is a road best travelled within us.

 

Ritualwell content is available for free thanks to the generous support of readers like you! Please help us continue to offer meaningful content with a donation today. 

Leave a Reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *

Related Rituals

Shop Ritualwell - Discover unique Judaica products

The Reconstructionist Network

Learning to Say "We": Writing Identity

In this immersion, we will reflect and expand on our personal experiences of identity, using writing exercises and in-depth discussions to think about, challenge, discover, explore, and experiment with different ways to identify ourselves, to consider how those ways connect us to and separate us from others, and how they represent and misrepresent aspects of who we are.

Four sessions, starting June 15th

Get the latest from Ritualwell

Subscribe for the latest rituals, online learning opportunities, and unique Judaica finds from our store.