Samain and the Summer’s End Moon<\/p>\n
Saturday gratefuls: Ruth. Dazzle. Alan and a new car. The signs of aging. Come to us all. If we’re lucky. Mountain living. Shadow Mountain. Kep, no longer out in the Snow, still my sweet boy. Kate, my sweet gal. My son. His 77 on screen golf! Seoah. Murdoch. Okwga. Seoah’s mom and dad. Our wild neighbors. Aging in place. Fire insurance. Wildfire. Move or stay, my choice. Mountain Water. Mountain Clouds. Emunah.<\/p>\n
Sparks of Joy and Awe: The Wizard of Oz<\/p>\n
One brief shining: Oh the things we’ll see if we turn on the news, bombs bursting in air and on the ground, tanks and soldiers pushing, pushing, pushing, Gazans streaming toward the south, peace in shatters oh hallelujah says Hamas, Hezbollah and their Iranian allies, push, push, push until all Arabs push back, please please please stop all this.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For today’s post, I’m offering this poem sent to me by my friend Rebecca Martin:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Taking Sides<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Today I am taking sides.<\/p>\n
I am taking the side of Peace.<\/p>\n
Peace, which I will not abandon<\/p>\n
even when its voice is drowned out<\/p>\n
by hurt and hatred,<\/p>\n
bitterness of loss,<\/p>\n
cries of right and wrong.<\/p>\n
I am taking the side of Peace<\/p>\n
whose name has barely been spoken<\/p>\n
in this winterless war.<\/p>\n
I will hold peace in my soma<\/p>\n
and share my body\u2019s breath,<\/p>\n
lest Peace be added<\/p>\n
to the body count.<\/p>\n
I will call for de-escalation<\/p>\n
even when I want nothing more<\/p>\n
than to get even.<\/p>\n
I will do it<\/p>\n
in the service of Peace.<\/p>\n
I will make a clearing<\/p>\n
in the overgrown<\/p>\n
thicket of cause and effect<\/p>\n
so Peace can breathe<\/p>\n
for a minute<\/p>\n
and reach the sky.<\/p>\n
I will do what I must<\/p>\n
to save the life of Peace.<\/p>\n
I will breathe through tears.<\/p>\n
I will swallow pride.<\/p>\n
I will bite my tongue.<\/p>\n
I will offer love<\/p>\n
without testing for deservingness.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
So don\u2019t ask me to wave a flag today<\/p>\n
unless it is the flag of Peace.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t ask me to sing an anthem<\/p>\n
unless it is a song of Peace.<\/p>\n
Don\u2019t ask me to take sides<\/p>\n
unless it is the side of Peace.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Rabbi Irwin Keller<\/p>\n
October 17, 2023<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
Samain and the Summer’s End Moon Saturday gratefuls: Ruth. Dazzle. Alan and a new car. The signs of aging. Come to us all. If we’re lucky. Mountain living. Shadow Mountain. Kep, no longer out in the Snow, still my sweet boy. Kate, my sweet gal. My son. His 77 on screen golf! Seoah. Murdoch. Okwga. … Continue reading Taking Sides<\/span>