Beh’alotcha — when you raise (Numbers 8:1–12:16)
I just returned from Oconomowoc, Wisconsin
where I was surrounded by a choir of angels
whose only purpose was to raise their voices
until we were all floating on each other’s breath.
Love was in the air, and our eyes, and in the
selection of musical notes, strung together
which we jotted down in our electronic devices
to bring back to our own communities
with hope we could raise them up a little, too.
This is what I have been entrusted with –
sing songs, raise spirits. I told them once,
the people in Newhall, we’re not here to
show you what we can do, but rather to show
you what you can do. They laughed and continued
to pay me, but the mission continues –
sing songs, raise spirits. This is what we did
for three nights in Oconomowoc, Wisconsin
where the mosquitoes are larger than life
the weather changes between every step
and the woman who wrote Miriam’s Song’s
spirit still raises us all high above the rooftops
and trees and sky. We are the fabric of the universe
praying to fix the broken, just like Moses did
for his sister. The true work is in the lifting.
When we raise, we illuminate.
When we sing, we pray
so many times.
Rick Lupert, a poet, songleader and graphic designer, is the author of 29 books including “God Wrestler: A Poem for Every Torah Portion.” Visit him at www.JewishPoetry.net
