In My Dream
Patience covers the earth
like a down blanket
that warms
fingers
in Afghanistan,
Israel,
Uzbekistan, Georgia,
the West Bank,
Gaza,
India, Africa,
Bosnia,
Iraq,
the United States.
In My Dream
Humility is a mansion
whose roof oversees
soldiers shedding guns
and whose rooms
house world leaders
shaking hands.
In My Dream
Gentleness is no coward.
Love is borderless.
Beams of light have not replaced the two towers.
Danny Pearl is alive.
In My Dream
Poetry raises children
who know peace.
- Esther Altshul Helfgott
Dear Pat
Stop worrying about my instructions.
They're not that difficult.
First, you crouch down. Squat.
Take a deep breath.
Suck in, hold it, and slowly let go.
Dream of completion and sky.
Then, push.
Don't think about blacking out.
You won't. And if you did, so what.
Nine women will be with you.
The men will be in another room.
The women will sing.
They will hum.
They will rub your back.
And chant.
Take a deep breath, Pat.
Suck in, hold it, and slowly let go.
Dream of completion and sky.
Then, push.
Push.
-Esther Altshul Helfgott
Writing fosters self-understanding & personal
growth. It helps us learn & understand.
Writing helps us to remember ourselves in the past.
It helps us to know.
POEMING
the SILENCE
WOMEN'S
WRITING
CIRCLE
Tuesday
night
at
Esther's
Upcoming Readings
Oct. 15, 2009, Thurs., Richard
Hugo House, 7:30 - 9 pm, with Switched-on-Gutenberg
contributors
July 25, 2009 Fremont library,
4 p.m., with DRASH contributors
May 31, 2009 Ravenna Third
Place Books, Seattle, 3 pm, with the DRASH contributors
May 3, 2009 Frye Art Museum,
2 pm, with Beyond Forgetting contributors
March 1, 2009 Hugo House,
7 pm Red Sky Memorial for
Irene Drennan
