Hanukkah 2023/5784
Passed from every generation,
these are rules for how to spark light
in the darkest days, Kislev to Kislev:
Place the shamash first,
then put candles right to left.
Make sure to light them left to right.
Three blessings you will sing
on the first night,
only two for the rest of chag.
Don’t work while the candles shimmer.
Place the hanukkiah so all can see.
Light the hanukkiah before Shabbat candles.
This year, I discovered a hidden light passed from every generation,
seeing it only when I needed it most: the sivivon flickers, too.
Spinning, I try so desperately to imagine:
Nes Gadol Haya Sham.
A Great Miracle Happened There.
