Sadness is something
We all must face:
A condition of the human race.
A lion doesn’t worry
About what lies in store;
A sheep doesn’t wonder,
“Shouldn’t life hold something more?”
Many run from sadness,
Find distractions, to escape.
Pills, drinks, entertainment,
Only briefly placate.
One thing holds the answer,
Fills the heart’s empty hole:
Being present, connecting
To our G-dly soul.
Peace is the “happiness”
We actually seek:
A meaningful life,
Even when things seem bleak.
David said: “If I ascend up to heaven,
Thou art there.”
“If I make my bed in hell,
Behold, Thou art there.”
Broken-hearted or exalted,
Amid life’s twists and turns,
Though untrained get discouraged,
The perceptive one learns.
It’s all about the journey,
“B’chol d’rachecha da’iehu” –
In all your ways, know Him –
In skies stormy, or blue.
At a wedding,
It’s hard to tell
Family from guests;
All are smiling, celebrating,
Festively dressed.
Lo aleinu, at a l’vayah
One can tell, easily,
Who in attendance is family.
They look broken,
They’re crying,
Heads down, clothes torn.
Those we love gone from us now,
We stand helpless, forlorn.
We are Hashem’s family,
HaKadosh Baruch Hu’s firstborn.
Until His House is rebuilt,
With Him, we will mourn.
This means, Chaim ben Yitzchak,
The Volozhin, said:
Our neshamos still live.
The Beis HaMikdash
Is not dead!
The nations would have
Built fortresses
To protect you,
Sworn allegiance forever,
If only they knew
The zenith of benefit
That would have occurred.
A conduit of blessing
From heaven to earth,
Goodness and mercy
Would have enveloped them
From Your house in Jerusalem.
What a world it will be
When they, at last, understand:
Crowning the G-d of Israel,
Is the destiny of man.
HaKadosh Baruch Hu,
Through history’s crucible,
You’ve always been with us;
You always will.
Our only true surety,
Guarding our faith and trust:
For in joy and in sadness,
You are with us.
By Sharon Marcus
