Two poems to mark the transition from summer to fall

Tashlich

We cast our sins
onto live water,
lentils or bread
as symbols,

on this, our Jewish
new year. We sing
the Aveinu malkeinu:
our father, our king,

pardon our transgressions,
give us a good year.
This ancient melody,
brings out our voices,
strong and sweet.

A bright, warm and breezy
Sunday afternoon,
the sun lowering
among cirrus clouds,

and there it is!
A rare sun dog,
a rainbow glimmer
of light just to
the left of that orb.

It stays with us
for the thirty minute ceremony,
a small miracle of
presence and timing,

affording hope
and inspiration
for this, our new year.

Fish jump up,
ducks fly onto the river,
creating wide circles,
to catch this windfall

In 1930’s Berlin,
police demanded to
know the meaning.
“We are feeding the fishes”.

Now we rejoice in our
freedom to be who we are.

(Notes: Tashlich means casting off. A sundog is a rare phenomenon, requiring a particular angle of sun, cirrus clouds composed of ice crystals, and a chill in the air. The Nazis were beginning to take over in Berlin in the 1930’s.)

Lynch Park, Beverly

It is a three dime
one pearl kind of day.
Messages from beyond,
after loss.

The salty ocean roils,
clambers up over the rail,
evoking a salty tear
of wonder, delight,

memories of childhood
by the sea, “ salt in our blood.”

A schooner amidst
sailboats, harbor views,
Great Haste island.

A cormorant glides
to a near rock to
shake, preen and spread wings
with stunning patterns.

A large gull silently
joins this bird in
a peaceful meditation
on the outcrop.

A brown gull soars
overhead in the fresh scene.

The park has a surrealistic feel,
with groups of people
scattered peacefully on the
impossibly green lawns,
under poetic trees.

Companionship, intimacy, breezes,
succulent cherries, as the
tide gradually recedes.

A walled rose garden houses
a wedding party, observed by
two children straddling iconic
Italianate lion sculptures.

Ice cream! Thick and creamy,
melting, messy, chunky.

Growing up, my Beverly aunt
used to chant-
‘I scream You sceam
we all scream for
Ice Cream!’