If we weep
if we sob, wail, keen
every one of us
tears coursing downÂ
millions of faces
                        can we put out the fires?
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If we mourn together
rend our garments,
lament, howl,
grieve the loss of each
woodpecker, egret, Steller’s jay,
squirrel, bear, deer, chipmunk,
fox, raccoon, lizard,Â
banana slug, beetle,Â
every redwood
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If anguish shakes us
so hard we can’t stand
and we drop to our knees
we fall to our bellies prostrateÂ
as in the Grand AleinuPrayer proclaiming God’s kingship, said near the conclusion of the prayer service.
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If, facedown on the seared earth,
we open our lips to declare
it’s up to us to mend the broken world
and our mouths fill with ash?
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                        Would that be a new beginning, God?
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Could we save the blazing forests
with the rain
of our repentance?
