A Poem for Tisha B'Av and the Geulah

mimivan

Wed, Jul 29 2009, 10:22 am

"He Is Coming, Where Is He?"
We interrogate the familiar
with exile assumptions of distance.
Like a wife in an empty house
feels the tug of a chained existence
cannot recall her husband's image
but is awakened by the echo of his voice.

Our eyes in exile fail us.
We are crippled by the illusion of time.

Look for him also in your sorrow.
Mashiach's essence burns brightest
where his existence is as vague as a child's dream.

Mashiach is born in the ashes of a burnt house
he is destined to rebuild.
His mazal is a star that breaks the darkness
of the darkest day in Av, the day of truth,
the 9th of Av to which we add the name Menachem,
a salve for our wounds.

One falling tear is a miniature window
in the house of Mashiach.
Tears are not evidence of his absence.
Our fasts become feasts of revealed good.

Our tears are mingled with the eternal cries of Moshe
and create a wave to break the gates of exile.
Look at the face, the eyes focused on Heaven,
the face of Moshe whose heart's walls are cracked
like a parched desert floor engraved
with the footsteps of a homeless generation.

When Moshe pleads, G-d must listen.
The delay of generations is only a preparation
for a richer fulfillment of a holy wish.

Where is he? He is here
a part of our hearts.
His image smiles before our eyes
which were closed as we flinched
at the blows of golus.

Just open your eyes and you will see his house.
Just open your soul, his house is our home.

kinderCK

Wed, Jul 29 2009, 10:28 am

this is beautiful .. Thanks so much for sharing.. I love the image of moshiach coming out of the darkest places. It's like thanking Hashem for a nisayon so that we can practice patience, bitachon, being dan l'chaf zchus at the hardest times.

servewithjoy

Wed, Jul 29 2009, 10:50 am

Mimivan,

Did you write this? It is unbelievably beautiful, poignant, and powerful. And while I am a voracious reader, I don't even usually like poems--usually skip them altogether. So glad I clicked and read this one. Thank you for posting this! May Hashem hear and answer with revealed good.

Best,

Vivs