Hineini: A Poem for the Omer
I will walk the requisite path--
The one that begins here,
Right here
In front of me.
I have stared at its armored edge
for a small taste of
Forever.
Really--
It looks no different
From any other spot;
There is no demarcation,
No arrows or exes
It’s Hard to be a Jew at Christmas, But Even Harder on Tu BiSh’vat
It is a truth universally acknowledged that it can be difficult to be Jewish at Christmas time. It has seeped into North American cultural consciousness so thoroughly that South Park even wrote a song about it, complete with trademark expletives.
Putting Down Roots: Why Our Jewish Family Needs a Yard Full of Trees
We celebrated the holiday of Tu BiShvat – the “Jewish Arbor Day” – way back in February, and we won’t celebrate it again until January. But no matter: I need to talk about the trees now.