Sh'mot in Haiku

December 20, 2024Helene Kohn

Sh’mot 

Here a new chapter 
May lofty dreams not be crushed 
Yet I shall be me

Va-eira

To persuade Pharoah
seven loathsome acts of God
none was sufficient

Bo 

Arise Nissan’s moon
Our long awaited release
in the wake of death

B’shalach

Terrifying paths
Beyond uncharted waters
Manna miracles 

Yitro 

I must be revered
Hear My Voice know My Presence
Without depiction

Mishpatim

Litany of laws
Mend enslaved and downtrodden
God’s treasured charges

T’rumah

Collective beauty 
Gilded cherubim guarding
Holiness within 

T’tzaveh

Dressing for the part
Purely layered elements
Yom Kippur preview 

Ki Tisa

With head uplifted
Moses pleads for leniency
And leaves radiant

Vayak’heil

Rectangular space
Majestically appointed
Communally owned

P’kudei

Unsimple freedoms
Moses miracles mountains
Closing Exodus

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