an old writer and his words

  • EASTER

    Tomorrow is Easter Sunday and Iam certain that neither of my mothers,one who had me, one who adopted me,will rise from their respective graves,with Jesus, all three Jewish.But resurrection is not a taskgiven over to women, the Bible says,with its always careful division of labor.And I will stop and think of the Judasin my life,…

    Lou Faber

  • AMUSEMENT

    Life, he said with his ever present smile,is very much like an amusement park.The preacher, priest, rabbi standsat the ticket booth, gladly taking your moneyand telling you to have a good time,but reminding you of the penaltyfor not following the rules he or shehands you, neatly bound and printedin longer or shorter versions dependingon who…

    Lou Faber

  • PINNING HOPES

    As a child I always avoidedpins, and not becauseI feared at all getting stuck,that could be a small badgeof courage, no my fearwas what might be onthe head of that pin or this.It was more elementalthan that, it raised an almostexistential issue that I wasnot yet prepared to deal with.But I had it on good…

    Lou Faber

  • SABBATH

    She could not understand whyanyone, really, would willinglygive up their Saturday morningto sit inside and recite prayershalf in a language that neitherthey nor most of the congregationspoke, and when I said some knewthe translations by heart, she added“then why not recite those.”She had a point, I knew, but wouldI easily concede, as if thatwould make…

    Lou Faber

  • MY RABBI (PART 2)

    I tell him I am thinking of becominga rabbi, someone just like him,a man who saw so many throughall manner of crises, joyous events. He sits back in his unsteady chair,one he refuses to replace, this onefinally broken in, he says with thatgentle smile that melts anger, anxiety. You would do well at it, I…

    Lou Faber

  • MY RABBI (PART 1)

    If you ask why I am a BuddhistI will tell you there are a myriadof possible reasons, choose one,or take this one, it fits nicely. I am in college, pulling my gradesup to mediocre, thoughts of medicinegone, law only faint on a distant horizona master’s degree away. I visit my childhood rabbi, a manwho has…

    Lou Faber

  • CHARMING

    You said it was a lucky charm,but I know my cereals and itclearly wasn’t that, nor was ita faked foot of some leporidaesylvilagus, even you would neverbe that cruel, you are a veganafter all, even your shoes aresome unholy man-made material. And I don’t believe in luck,I’ve never had it, good or badalthough I do…

    Lou Faber

  • JUSTICE

    The Rabbi always said thatthe highest form of justicewould be to teach a man to fish,rather than to donate fish to him. The Rabbi in question is nowlong dead, and in so many placesteaching a man to fish will onlyenable him to poison his family. We have laid waste to ouir worldassuming someone will clean…

    Lou Faber

  • HEAVEN CAN WAIT

    A Rabbi once told me thatif you want to get to heaven,something Jews don’t believe in,you must atone to those youhave harmed, or injuredbefore you die. I’ve started making a list,and it feels like I am insome wierd version ofHigh Fidelity, but mineis more than a top five. I’ve made a few efforts,some accepted, some…

    Lou Faber

  • TRIPTYCH

    A triptych hangs in the gallery of memory. Admission is by invitation only. The first panel is a time fogged mirror into which I stare. The adopted image hides behind the tarnished silver. My adopted mother’s voice is heard from a hidden speaker: “You were named after my father.” I want to tape his picture…

    Lou Faber