Yom Kippur 5764/Flight

Yom Kippur 5764

Victory stands silent at the door,
ashamed - it didn’t quite mean it
and it’s careful
not to come in before it’s been properly invited
or there’s room. After all,
this is the house that anguish built
and it’s broken on all sides.
the B’nai Hagar congregate here
to mourn
that there is no mending it, no
going back.

So victory stands penitent
and patient, as each soul
circumambulates one last time
before exiting, whole, through the open door,
the House of the Left Behind.

Flight

I am surrounded.
I have no wings and no claws
to fly and dig my way
out of you.
I have been tracking your
subterranean signal for days now
and there is no release
strong enough
or long enough to rid me of you.
I am tied down
and I cannot breathe or move,
but I can follow you
underground and overland, I can follow you.

If I could love every contour
of your body a thousand times
if I could swim or drown with you
if I could kiss you and one more time
bring this madness to fruition
if I could die like this -
loved -
and wake to another life.

Or if the earth beneath my feet
that thumps with your drumbeat
would sustain me into bliss.

But the ground just rumbles
and I look for claws and wings
to dig and fly away from you,
my love.