Poetry Friday–Hanukkah

Detail from Hanukkah Boy, © 2012 Michelle Kogan, watercolor and watercolor pencil.

HANUKKAH YOU’RE  HERE…

Hanukkah,
your haloing glow
creeps up on us each year…
Sometimes early,
sometimes late
sometimes just right.
You follow moon’s
lunar calendar–
But, most of us
work-crazed creatures
follow work-crazed
Gregorian calendars.

Here you are again
early in December–
with classes still going
and orders still flowing
and energy levels slooowing…
Ooo, Aaah, Ummm…
And barely a moment
to think fairly on you–
Of your oil lamp miracle,
Maccabees’ temple triumph,
and message of freedom
lighting winter’s dark night.

But here I am,
and here you are–
Together we will
light a small light
for eight days of freedom,
eke out some oil
for sizzling latke’s,
and spin our dreidel
to forget our woes…
Together we’ll
close our eyes,
open our hearts
and spread
candlelit
freedom
of hope
around

© 2020 Michelle Kogan

I was looking for another Hanukkah poem to share and came across an intriguing blog called Rebekah by Rebekah Lowin, a journalist by day and much more. The poem I’m sharing is from her post called: 20 Beautiful Hanukkah Poems You’ll Want to Memorize. There are also some poems not specifically on Hanukkah but related to it. Two others I liked that you’ll find there are Walt Whitman’s MIRACLES and Mary Oliver’s POPPIES.

Oil Lamp Menorah, archival print, © 2020 Michelle Kogan, pen and ink and watercolor, available in my Etsy Shop.

The Feast of Lights
by Emma Lazarus

Kindle the taper like the steadfast star
Ablaze on evening’s forehead o’er the earth,
And add each night a lustre till afar
An eightfold splendor shine above thy hearth.
Clash, Israel, the cymbals, touch the lyre,
Blow the brass trumpet and the harsh-tongued horn;
Chant psalms of victory till the heart takes fire,
The Maccabean spirit leap new-born.

Remember how from wintry dawn till night,
Such songs were sung in Zion, when again
On the high altar flamed the sacred light,
And, purified from every Syrian stain,
The foam-white walls with golden shields were hung,
With crowns and silken spoils, and at the shrine,
Stood, midst their conqueror-tribe, five chieftains sprung
From one heroic stock, one seed divine.

Five branches grown from Mattathias’ stem,
The Blessed John, the Keen-Eyed Jonathan,
Simon the fair, the Burst-of Spring, the Gem,
Eleazar, Help of-God; o’er all his clan
Judas the Lion-Prince, the Avenging Rod,
Towered in warrior-beauty, uncrowned king,
Armed with the breastplate and the sword of God,
Whose praise is: ‘He received the perishing.’

Read the rest of the poem here

Happy Hanukkah to all Celebrating!

Buffy at her blog Buffy Silverman is hosting this weeks Poetry Friday Roundup, thanks for hosting Buffy. She’s featuring Sylvia Vardell’s and Janet Wong’s latest poetry anthology HOP TO IT Poems to Get You Moving, be sure to stop by!

Visit Renée LaTulippe at No Water River to find out more about what Poetry Friday is.