Thinking About My Funeral
My friends will stand //
among the trees //
saying Kaddish.
T’zit T’zit
What begins as a tangle of threads in my hands becomes the connection to creation, forming visions behind my eyes, images within my heart, sounds inviting the sacred.
Bathing Beauty
I dry her hair //
gently, squeezing over her scalp //
as she used to do for me
Shifra, a Midwife
We know how to protect a child //
from hostile eyes, //
and there will be more deliveries on this journey.
Shevat
At sunset the oryx finds water inside shrubs. //
Magician of the desert, it links its straight horns to the sky.
The Avodah Service
He confesses his family’s sins to whom all praise is due //
He requests divine forgiveness, then declares TITHARU! //
The kohanim and the people who witness what was said //
Declare “Baruch Shem Kavod Malchuto L’Olam Va’ed.”
A Viddui for Rosh Hashanah L’Behemot
“What if we read our Torah with open eyes
and see that its truths are written
on the skins of our fellow creatures…”
Hashkiveinu: Strength in Vulnerability
“Guard us through the coming night
With peaceful faces, With faithful hands, / With the breath of life.”
Placenta Burial Ritual after the First 40 Days
This lovely closing ceremony marks the end of the Fourth Trimester with placenta burial.
Eagle and Vulture
Both birds of prey //
Both live at my river //
but only the vultures visit my home.
