Who is the One
Most absent from view
An already set sun
From me and you
Yet all that we see
And all that we are
All that will be
And all that’s so far
Hangs by a thin strand
In our minds so small
We hardly understand
Almost anything at all
From where do we come?
To where are we headed?
What is the grand sum?
To Whom are we indebted?
The questions get even louder
As the hands on the clock clap
And seconds turn to powder
As time’s fingers snap
The steady rhythmic beat
Lulls us into soft slumber
Where we surrender in defeat
And we wait for our number
How helpless we all seem
How vulnerable we are
As actors in a dream
On some distant star
No chance on our own
Not a whisper of hope
With hearts hard as stone
And such a limited scope
What’s a man to do?
What’s a man to say?
Where is he to go?
And how is he to stay?
The only hope that dawns
The only One that’s real
In the face of fifty yawns
And in spite of what you feel
Can you see now?
What you could not before
Can you see how-
You can’t anymore
What’s really up
Who’s truly down
That half-filled cup
And the foolish crown
Who in your mind died
Making you the king
The only one to decide
The meaning of a thing
It’s all sound and fury
Not my words, you know
Filled with tears and worry
And going awfully slow
Cannot speed it up
Can’t slow it down
It just might end abrupt-
ly- It may just quickly drown
But before it does
Before it’s too late
Before what is “was”
There is no time to wait
Look at the glow blue sky
As it turns night black
And realize that’s G-d’s eye
And you are staring back!
The world is tinged with wonder
And life is laced with awe
So we can face the thunder
And obey His Holy Law!

In the Spirit of Purim an Original Poem by Rabbi Label Lam DvarTorah, Copyright © 2007 by Rabbi Label Lam and Torah.org.