One from the archives: Preparations, a Shabbat poem

Here's one from the archives, written in 2001. Shabbat shalom to all!

 

PREPARATIONS

 

Breathe deep, from the belly,

as if for singing.

Notice your vertebrae, the curve

where spine tilts to pelvis,

and inhale everything into place.

Blanket the mind

as trees blanket grass with leaves.

Drape woven wool over

every sharp worry and task.

They'll survive a night without you.

Drizzle cornmeal on cookie sheets

like a sand painting

of the chaos in which creation begins.

Let challah dough rise and fall

like slow breathing.

Tonight the sky arches

like bent boughs roofed with cloud,

spangled with constellations.

The Breath of Life spreads peace

over creation.