A journey has many parts; by<\/p>\n
Studying them we learn and<\/p>\n
By their implementation we<\/p>\n
Move forward<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Separating the parts from the sum<\/p>\n
May make the journey a bit easier<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Here are some of the parts that<\/p>\n
Make up the journey of life.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Point of Departure<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Yaakov departed from
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Be\u2019er Sheva and went
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Toward Choron<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
All parts begin with parting<\/p>\n
And all journeys begin with<\/p>\n
Departure<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
But one must know the<\/p>\n
Point of origin before one<\/p>\n
Can find the point of departure:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Be\u2019er Sheva is a place of comfort<\/p>\n
And peace, where the wells flow<\/p>\n
Strong and the covenants stronger<\/p>\n
Yet. It is security, home, blanketed<\/p>\n
In the cocoon that is family, safe in<\/p>\n
The arms of healthy values and clear<\/p>\n
Virtue.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Choron is a place of wrath, fury, anger:<\/p>\n
The ugliness of the world<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
For a child, even a teenager or young adult,<\/p>\n
There must be a Be\u2019er Sheva; but once a<\/p>\n
Person wishes to build a life, a family, a home<\/p>\n
The person must depart from the comfort and<\/p>\n
Security of home for the difficult challenges of<\/p>\n
The world<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Close Encounters of the Holy Kind<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He encountered the place<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He came and he prayed.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
One would think the journey should<\/p>\n
Begin with learning the new language,<\/p>\n
Customs and dress of the new country.<\/p>\n
One would think wrong.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We pray, connect to everything we<\/p>\n
Have been taught and everything we<\/p>\n
Will teach others; we pray that the past<\/p>\n
Wells of knowledge and covenants of peace<\/p>\n
Never be left behind even as we move<\/p>\n
Ahead<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Ahead of the Pack<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
He took from the stones
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Of the place and placed
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Them around his head<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Why only the head:<\/p>\n
If he feared the wild,<\/p>\n
Then the whole body<\/p>\n
Should be surrounded;<\/p>\n
If he didn\u2019t, then none<\/p>\n
Of the body should?<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Because if the head is protected,<\/p>\n
Surrounded by stones, hard rock<\/p>\n
Solid faith and humility, unwavering<\/p>\n
Then the wild of which we speak<\/p>\n
Will not harm the body either; true<\/p>\n
The body must deal in the physical<\/p>\n
But when the head is in the right place<\/p>\n
Then the entire body follows suit<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
A head represents intellect, but intellect is in flux;<\/p>\n
The intellect differs in person, age and conviction:<\/p>\n
However, when surrounded by stones, humility, then<\/p>\n
The entire body of work and everything one does is safe<\/p>\n
And sound<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
And then:<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Stones Immaculate<\/b><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
This stone which I have
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Set as a monument shall
\n<\/i><\/p>\n
Become a house of G-d<\/i><\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Not gold, not silver\u2026<\/p>\n
Not (only) the shiny<\/p>\n
Things in life, but<\/p>\n
(Even) the mundane<\/p>\n
Ones become a home,<\/p>\n
A place of warmth and<\/p>\n
Comfort for the Divine<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
The Divine in a Torah scroll<\/p>\n
Or in a prayer book, is one thing;<\/p>\n
But when one takes stones, matter<\/p>\n
And makes them Divine, that truly is<\/p>\n
A sign of a home, where not only<\/p>\n
Is the mat welcoming but the entire<\/p>\n
Edifice is welcoming as well<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
We can truly accomplish this, each and<\/p>\n
Every one of us our part, only when we<\/p>\n
Depart from ourselves, pray and connect<\/p>\n
For and to what is true, and put our heads<\/p>\n
In the right places.<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
These are some of the parts that lead to the<\/p>\n
Greater sum of the parts<\/p>\n
<\/p>\n
Mendel Jacobson is a writer, poet and journalist living in Brooklyn. His weekly poetry can be seen at jakeyology.blogspot.com<\/i><\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"
A journey has many parts; by Studying them we learn and By their implementation we Move forward Separating the parts from the sum May make the journey a bit easier Here are some of the parts that Make up the journey of life. Point of Departure Yaakov departed from Be\u2019er Sheva<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":168,"featured_media":44540,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"closed","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"_acf_changed":false,"_cloudinary_featured_overwrite":false,"footnotes":""},"categories":[101],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-12237","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-arts-media"],"yoast_head":"\n