Shofar - A Judith Felsen Poem

Shofar

When the shofar is daily blown, 

will I hear the wordless voice,

 summoning me to Your throne,

 a full and empty room which I have never left?

Will I be called in love,

 to repair my faults, 

 transgressions which I have used to conceal my face from you,

 and hide behind?

Will I remember convenants of our connection, 

 mitzvot of restriction and permission,

 all  allowing me to bind my open  heart to You?

Will the portals of my soul be clear,

 allowing  recognition of the wisdom of Your prophets,

 present memories of ancestry and the  current presence of

 Your emissaries?

Can I allow myself to feel one hundred  cries of grief

 and flow of tears,

 knowing  in the midst of chaos, 

 I am still at home with You?

When Your  wordless voice is heard,

 will I be ready,

 to be seen and judged,

 accountable for all that I have done

 and left undone?

As the piercing notes are sounded,

 will I relinquish will,

 allowing Yours in place

 of mine?

This  fear and yearning that I feel

 calls me , 

 as does Your voice,

 to the end of gallus,  

 when we all are one.

And beyond that,

 may I dwell in  the knowing

 of Your presence,

 that we have never separated

 and that I/we  are one with You.

When the shofar is daily blown, 

 I am called to my purpose,

  Israel ,

 we are 

 one.

 Copyright Judith E. Felsen, Ph.D. 2012