Following the Gemara
Somewhere along the way, the instrumental value (which has religious dimensions) of Talmud was transformed into a religious value of following the Gemara.
Gil
I Am a Forest of Time
Let me speakThe verdant whisper of treesThe world’s breath blownBetween my bodiesThrough my livesI am a forest of timeSeed, sapling, stumpMaiden, mother, masterOf life and death andLife againWithin my shadowGrow the thousand thingsAt play, running and returningAt rest, dreaming and awaitingAs I bend and shape for themThe star’s indifferent loveInto the sweetness of oneThousand tonguesEach … Read more
Friend, Enemy
Loving my friend/enemy is the hardest thing because I am afraid, reactive, judgmental, petty. Loving my friend/enemy is the easiest thing because I am curious, compassionate, kind, and brave. And both things are true for both of us.
Dear God
Dear GodI don’t believe in theDeath penaltyAs a golden ruleMaybe forWarring chimpsIt makes a certainNon-senseBut for a kingdomThat has grown farBeyond the dark forestSurelyYou can find useFor me yet,You canHeal me
Trauma-Informed Activism
What does trauma-informed activism look like? Maybe… – instead of shaming the audience into agreement, distinguish responsibility from inherent wickedness and offer an actionable path into solidarity – instead of demanding immediate empathy for the other side, begin by recognizing the listener’s own fear or grief, without making another population’s rights contingent on that empathy … Read more
Oliver (2018-2026)
“Oliver (2018-2026)” A small gingerStalking deli meatOn a Jerusalem counterStreet kitten givenAnother lifeWhen sheShows upHe doesn’t evenLook up Roommates:The kitten getsA shelfOf endless bountyHe still curls upHunched over hisBowlStreet kids gottaWatch your back New manNew friendNew lapAlways sticking himselfIn the middleOur first kissCellos purringBetween us Now we’reHomeAs the worldClosesTime stopsBefore our eyesFor himWe’re rightWhereWe shouldBe … Read more
The Youth Are Not Alright
“The Youth Are Not Alright” Give me a knifeAnd I will stabGive me a gunAnd I will shootMy way out of this painTaking fifty of theCockroachesWith me as IThrow my lifeOnto theBurning trash heapThat is my generation’sLot in this world:IntifadaPandemicGenocideWarI have lostSo many partsOf the self I wasPromisedStolen at gunpointLeft with nothingBut vibrating emptinessOpen wounds … Read more
Here I Am
Our cat is dyingWe all have a virusMoney is beyond tightSupreme court justices are violently arrestedArtists are attackedGangs are seizing landSoldiers are shooting civiliansHamas is returning to powerThe government has driven us off a cliffData centers are leaking dieselFascism is on the riseHate is on the riseThe ecosystems are falling apart Breathe in the suffering … Read more
Maybe Next Time
Some people try to argue with me all the time I ALWAYS disappoint them And yet they’re the ones who never learn Maybe next time they’ll Get It. 😉
Art Is Supposed to Make Us Uncomfortable
I don’t know if I like or dislike Yuval and Rachel’s documentary. I haven’t seen it and, given my schedule, unfortunately I probably won’t have time. Therefore, I don’t actually know what message they are encoding: The IDF committed genocide in Gaza? The IDF used “collateral damage” to legitimize the unnecessary deaths of thousands of … Read more