But if the household is too small for a lamb, then he and his neighbor who is nearest to his house shall take [one] according to the number of people, each one according to one’s ability to eat, shall you be counted for the lamb.
Exodus 12:4
Did I mention I grew up poor?
It was just the two of us, my mother and I.
Too small of a household to be given a lamb,
though I’m sure my mother would have taken it.
It was before I was a vegetarian so I would
have eaten anything put on a plate in front of me.
Except liver. A tween has to have his standards.
And I’m still conceptually against mayonnaise.
I had to be given so much by my neighbors.
Rides. Lunch. Occasionally new apartments.
One woman, the mother of my friend, wanted
to adopt me but mine wouldn’t hear of it.
Hold on to what is yours and expect that
riches are coming was not my mother’s motto,
verbatim, but I could read between her lines.
Lottery tickets and cigarettes were her treasures.
She never realized Las Vegas was her Egypt.
It’s different now. I’d say of course but I still
get nervous when the paycheck people call.
They’re going to take it all away my first thought.
I’m cautious and careful and frugal.
I’ve figured ways to apply lamb’s blood
to the door without it leaving a stain.
So far it’s working. Everyone is okay.
I’m able to donate to the lamb people like a
spiritual carbon offset. We juggle our morals
and do what we can. I know the difference
between Egypt and everywhere else.
Los Angeles poet Rick Lupert created the Poetry Super Highway (an online publication and resource for poets), and hosted the Cobalt Cafe weekly poetry reading for almost 21 years. He’s authored 25 collections of poetry, including “God Wrestler: A Poem for Every Torah Portion“, “I’m a Jew, Are You” (Jewish themed poems) and “Feeding Holy Cats” (Poetry written while a staff member on the first Birthright Israel trip), and most recently “The Tokyo-Van Nuys Express” (Poems written in Japan – Ain’t Got No Press, August 2020) and edited the anthologies “Ekphrastia Gone Wild”, “A Poet’s Haggadah”, and “The Night Goes on All Night.” He writes the daily web comic “Cat and Banana” with fellow Los Angeles poet Brendan Constantine. He’s widely published and reads his poetry wherever they let him.
