Mundane Observations – a poem for Parsha Pinchas

On the first day is a holy convocation; you shall not perform any mundane work. ~ Numbers 28:18

Every time I flick a light switch on Saturday
I wonder about the spiritual repercussions.

I also wonder if I should have said flip
a light switch and the internet search into

which is correct is, clearly, Someone
trying to teach me about the word mundane.

I recall working as a temporary employee
where I would don a tie to sit in a

windowless room to type numbers from
pieces of paper into, essentially, an abacus

for the greater good of the company.
Decades later I couldn’t tell you what any

of those numbers meant or what difference
I made. I also don’t own a tie.

(This is also untrue. I have some old ties
but I consider them to be costume elements

and they hold the same meaning to me as
the afro wig I wear at least every other Purim.)

I’m also a proud tuner of my guitar on the Sabbath
because it is for the greater good.

Let’s put aside that I am playing an instrument
at all on holy days. Had the ancient priests

heard the catchy tunes we bring for
Kabbalat Shabbat, I’m sure they would have

given us a waiver. One person’s mundane
is another person’s spectacle.

I don’t get caught up with the mundane details
of how I observe. Even if I have to occasionally

operate a motor vehicle, or flip a slight switch,
my heart just tells me to observe.

Rick Lupert, a poet, songleader and graphic designer, is the author of 28 books including “God Wrestler: A Poem for Every Torah Portion.” Find him online at www.JewishPoetry.net