This poem by Trisha Arlin is praise for the things between which we separate, as well as the separation itself. Inspired by the Havdalah ceremony that distinguishes between the holiness of Shabbat and the mundane of the rest of the week, this poem references the ritual objects and blessings used during the ceremony. Trisha Arlin is a writer/performer of kavanot and a rabbinic student at the Academy of Jewish Religion (AJR), a pluralistic institution for rabbinic and cantorial training. She submitted this piece to Ritualwell.org, a project of the Reconstructionist Rabbinical College that provides a platform for creating new Jewish practices.
Havdalah: Prayer for Holy Separations
Praise the Before, Praise the After, Praise the Time In Between.
I construct four walls and a roof and no windows.
I put in only one door, open it once a year, and never go in.
Inside the walls, Holy of Holies. Outside the walls, everything else.
All I did was build a temple.
I buy some fabric.
I put fringes on the corners and cover myself with the cloth.
Inside the cloth, I pray. Outside the cloth, I gossip.
But all I did was cover myself.
I have a candle, wine, and sweet smelling spices
I smell the spice, then I light the candle and dip it in the wine.
Before sunset, mindfulness and rest. After sundown, a week of new mistakes.
All I did was wait for it to get dark.
Praise Kadosh the holy,
Praise Khol the mundane,
Praise Ha Mavdil Beyn Kodesh Lekhol, that which differentiates between them.
Amen.