Sabbath for the Land

I am grateful to live on land that I have cultivated and harvested—acres of strawberries, broccoli, and cauliflower, and cover crops such as rye and clover. Most of the land has lain fallow for many years now. While walking through these fields, I am awestruck by the complexity and diversity that the Earth brings forth when left to her own devices. In this shmitah year, in particular, I am aware of the critical need to remember and fulfill our sacred task of caring for the Earth.

 

 

 

What happens when we grant
the Land a Sabbath, relinquish
dominion over the Earth?

… the needy of your people
may eat, and what they leave,
the wildlife of the field may eat.

When we cease sowing and reaping,
Release our human desire
For the neatness of edges and rowsEarth sprouts forth
with sprouting-growth,
plants that seed forth seeds
after their kind.

Trees that yield fruit,
in which is their seed,
after their kind.

 

This is what happens when
We grant a Sabbath to the Land.
We remember …
The Earth does not belong to us.
We belong to the Earth.