Ancient Carbs – A poem for Parsha Emor

You must take fine flour and bake it into 12 loaves. Each loaf must be made from two-tenths of an ephah of flour. ~ Leviticus 24:5

I bake bread every week
which is a lie as it’s certainly
not every week.

I did bake bread last week.
I’m planning on making it this week
(though by the time you read this

that could be ancient history.)
I follow the recipe exactly.
Whatever amount of ephahs

they want me to include, I include.
Whatever number of degrees they
want me to bake it at,

I bake it that exact number.
What flour should I use?
They’ll tell me and I’ll use it.

Bread is a complex mystery
but one of the simplest things to make
if you don’t count time as an ingredient.

(The best bakers tell you
you should always count time
as an ingredient.)

And what an accomplishment when
you’ve provided the most basic food
through your own kitchen magic.

You sustain yourself like they did
in the desert, like they did in the
tents of Abraham.

You’re ready to bake for the priests.
But you’re off the hook (the bread hook)
because we don’t have priests anymore

Just two loaves for Friday night will do it.
Twist the dough together like we do.
You can do this.

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