Canticle 135

There will always be
silences
that stand in for wisdom
and silences
that are tantamount to
lies and murder

How can we reconcile
these?
How can we navigate
forever
between shame
and pride
in a world
that makes inaction
an extreme
among all other forms
of hatred
and nihilistic refusal?

Like sliding
a bow
across the strings
of an out-of-tune
instrument
still hoping
that a sound
will produce proof
of our existence
of our deliberate act
of our responsibility
for having done this
rather than nothing
for having sought to manifest
to create
rather than destroy
to add to the world
rather than subtract
to multiply
rather than divide

O Adonai,
send forth your boundless Spirit
so that we may know how to live with mesure