After a break in the weekly parsha cycle, we find ourselves back in Sefer VaYikra and returned to the tragedy of Aaron's sons, Nadav and Avihu, who die suddenly at the altar. This parsha also speaks about Yom Kippur and the goat that is sent to Azazel and there is a great deal of material about forbidden sexual relationships.
For my poem this week, I did not progress past the first sentence of the parsha which contains the title, Acharei Mot, or After the Death. To be by the side of one who passes is to witness to a holy moment; a moment of transition of the Mayt, but also the transition of the mourner. This poem explores that painful, yet important progression from numbness and mourning to a new self.
After the Death אחרי מות
After the death
he was silent
but for the sound
of the beating
of his own heart
still pumping
in his chest
After the death
she wept
her tears
a deep well
of
salt
and memories
After the death
they sat
shocked and dazed
the long wait over
they
shared memories
of her
Perhaps her ears still heard
as she passed from
this realm to the next
After the death
his mind went blank
After the death
they were as ripped
as their clothing.
After the death
she could feel his soul
hover in the emptiness
the air now full
of him
she felt the flutter
of his sou
in the silence
as it rose
uncertainly
seeking
searching.
After the death
words were
not enough
or words were
too much
too many.
After the death
comprehension
diminished.
After the death
He did not know
How to move
without her
at his side.
Yet,
after the death
time inched forward
minutes
hours
then
days
weeks
then months
and slowly
as slow as the
creep of a snail
along grains of sand
as slowly as a pebble
is smoothed by the tides
there was a change
minutes multiplied
days piled upon days
months layered upon months
the sun and then the moon
and the sun again
One day
long after the death
his words returned
slowly
hesitantly
to recount stories
Long
after the death
her cheeks regained some color
He began to read again
She began to sew.
They began to smile
small
tentative
Broken hearts slowly heal.
Long after the death
She sang once again
with a hint of sadness
in her voice,
but she sang.
וַיְדַבֵּ֤ר יְהֹוָה֙ אֶל־מֹשֶׁ֔ה אַחֲרֵ֣י מ֔וֹת שְׁנֵ֖י בְּנֵ֣י אַהֲרֹ֑ן בְּקׇרְבָתָ֥ם לִפְנֵי־יְהֹוָ֖ה וַיָּמֻֽתוּ׃
Gd spoke to Moses after the death of the two songs of Aaron who died when they drew too close to the presence of Gd.
Leviticus 16:1