TASHLIKH: Reluctant to Leave

 
After I wind up and throw
Sin-crumbs into the flow
Iniquities now cast away,
 
Reluctance sits me down
On the riverside ground
Urging “for a while, just stay.”
 
There’s so much to ponder
More soul-cloth to launder
Lessons the waters will teach,
 
So I open this river tome
Whispering this wisdom poem
And continue my God to beseech.
 
“All rivers flow to the sea, yet the sea is never full, ”  – Kohelet  1:7 
“ Let justice well up like water; righteousness like an unfailing stream. ”  -Amos  5:24 
“Cast your sins into the depths of the sea.”    -Micah 7:19 
“I have wrestled and seen the face of God by the river Yabbok.”     -Jacob in Genesis 32:24 
“I’m gonna lay down my sword and shield, down by the riverside.”     – Pete Seeger
“Rivers know this: there is no hurry. We shall get there some day.”   – A. A. Milne 
“Live a life of mitzvah, then your peace will be like a river.”  – Isaiah 48:18 
“Be like the river who moves toward the unknown, who doesn’t ask the mountain for directions”.   –Susie Rinehart
 
There’s so much to ponder
More soul-cloth to launder
Lessons the waters will teach,
 
When I open this river tome,
whispering this wisdom poem,
I continue my God to beseech.
 
Colorful mosaic with a winding blue river, geometric patterns, flowers, and green, yellow, orange, and red tiles.
by Rabbi Gila Ruskin
Facebook
Email

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. 

The Reconstructionist Network

Serving as central organization of the Reconstructionist movement

Training the next generation of groundbreaking rabbis

Modeling respectful conversations on pressing Jewish issues

Curating original, Jewish rituals, and convening Jewish creatives

Get the latest from Ritualwell

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

The Reconstructionist Network