This week’s Torah portion, Haazinu, features Moses’ last poem to the People of Israel. In honor of this poem I am including two poems I mentioned in last week’s service. The first is by Shimon Peres, and the second is by an Israeli poet in honor of Peres’ recent passing.
Enjoy and Shabbat Shalom,
Rabbi Alex
Ray of Hope by Shimon Peres
O my Lord, it’s time to pray
When a new sun shines, let’s make hay
So save my land from desert stay
Call the oceans, salt to melt away
Call the oceans – salt to melt away (repeated)
When a new sun shines, let’s make hay
So save my land from desert stay
Call the oceans, salt to melt away
Call the oceans – salt to melt away (repeated)
[Guitar Solo]
And bless streams with love’s sway
Provide my foe and friend a bloodless day
Invite boys and girls for peace to pray,
O … Ye…
Then send a ray of hope
– for a new way
Provide my foe and friend a bloodless day
Invite boys and girls for peace to pray,
O … Ye…
Then send a ray of hope
– for a new way
And bless streams with love’s sway
Provide my foe and friend a bloodless day
Invite boys and girls for peace to pray,
O, Ye
Then send a ray of hope – for a new way
Provide my foe and friend a bloodless day
Invite boys and girls for peace to pray,
O, Ye
Then send a ray of hope – for a new way
Someone Will Get Your Eyes by Sharon Shinar
Someone will get your eyes,
The eyes that saw a nation, before the nation succeeded in seeing itself,
The eyes that saw Ben Gurion stand on his head,
And Golda, in the seat of the Prime Minister.
Someone will get your eyes,
The eyes that saw wars, terror and bereavement
And saw Independence and a flag, with a blue Star of David
Eyes that saw a Prime Minister assassinated
But also saw peace treaties
Eyes that under no circumstances
ever agreed to see the End.
Someone will get your eyes,
Eyes that saw innovation, even before the word had an entry in the dictionary
Eyes that saw losses but refused to see defeat
Eyes that saw worlds, and saw leaders
Eyes that taught, each day anew, to have faith.
Someone will get your eyes
And how symbolic is it that you specifically chose to leave them behind
Eyes that saw so much of everything, and insisted that,
no matter how dark things looked in the tunnel of the moment,
there was always at least a little point of light at the end.
Someone, will get your eyes,
And that is so much more than everything else
For history always remains behind
But if we succeed in looking forward, like your eyes
Then perhaps, even for just a moment, we will succeed in believing in all of this
For ourselves,
For you.
Last Updated on 10/14/2016 by wpadm