Silently Broken

Sometimes I wish you’d rip my fuckin’ heart out.

Just slash it open, dismantle it

RELENTLESSLY!

That way, I wouldn’t die in each breath

When you speak her name

RELENTLESSLY.

    Photo Credit: He

© 2019: DNKL Silently Broken 

Branded Innocence: Their Living Poetry

Hold her as if unafraid

and bring your hands

unobstructed into sight.

Threads of cascading Auburn

upon freckled skin

Dare to touch, Dare to delight

paralyzed to give in

A fit perfected

sculpted by Highest hands,

she rests willingly.

Overwrought slender digits

find supple haven seeding

Passion flaring, Ardor churning

heart and soul, yearning

Under glistening blanket
encapsulated by whistling light
slipping into shadow.
Through piercing Mahogany
and the glister of rime,
he quivers electrified
as touching desires stir hurriedly

Consummate proportions
skin silken smooth
dominion over the curves.
Exchanging buoyant force
upon dewy fixations crowned
Heavy breathing, Barely breathing
An idolatry set ablaze

Lines of Lust
inhaled depravity
Take my breath away.
This beauteous illusion
upon broken mantles poised,
Don't speak it, no utterance...

I'm in love with you!

© 2015 DNKG Branded Innocence

Canyons and Chasms: Facing the Unknown

As I gazed out of my trapezoid casement windows, I noticed a tiny red-throated finch sitting alone in the laurel tree. It flitted from branch to branch struggling to master the art of flying. I judged the bird; after all, birds are innate flyers my mind mocked. It flapped and flailed from the windowsill to the branch, to a leaf and back to the windowsill. It came to the highest eave, fluffed its plumage, and burrowed its head to rest.

This beautiful creature reminded me of an important spiritual bridge: embracing the unknown. When the finch rose this morning, it did not know whether or not it would return to the nest a successful flyer. It did not know whether it would taste the air of freedom or remain a prisoner to its current predicament. All it knew was its present moment.

We are all consumed with moments of unknowing. Intrinsically hidden and tucked out of sight, at the base of the unknown, is fear. For our finch, we imagine the fears it may feel. Perhaps it is a fear of falling, of being damaged, or even of not knowing where to go should it succeed.

Life’s journeys are demanding. As humans striving for acceptance and love, we place additional pressures upon ourselves to perform better and stronger than ever before. We push ourselves to cross into the unknown before we even have a chance to slow down and explore what that unknown is. We leap into chasms and canyons without bottom and are filled with dread when we realize how deep we are in.

As I ponder this, a gentle peck upon the window pulls me back into the present. I smile and realize that even from our chasms, when faith is hanging dangerously by a thread, the Creator is always present. It is in these tiny moments where cultivating gratefulness triggers a spark of hope. Like the path the finch traverses, crossing those unknown paths means simply reaffirming our faith in that spiritual Source which is greater than ourselves.

DNKG Unknown © 2014

Belonging

It is Sisterhood’s hope that through our Women’s column, you can find a sense of belonging, a place of empathy, of mutual compassion, a home for the Jewish woman’s voice. Life is filled with Light and Shadow, up and downs, faith and disbelief. We hope these words can be a ray of sunshine peeking through the clouds lifting your soul.

The feeling of belonging comes at us like the Viennese Waltz: the glamour of a new place, the graceful couples who seamlessly hold time in their hands and maneuver about each other sweeping from one action to the next without flaw, keeping rhyme and measure in constant balance of the often rapid steps and movements. Anyone can dance, you think. So, it’s your turn. You take a partner’s hand, but realize the timing is too fast, you cannot keep up, so you stumble and fall. Maybe belonging isn’t so easy.

In praising friends who are converting and meeting new members who are exploring their options in the community, I am reminded of the anxiety of “Belonging.” I spoke with a new member whose voice was guarded and who appeared uncomfortable in the space swarming with new faces. We shared mutual anxieties over the language barrier, confusion on the length of the service, fear of the word “Oneg” and what that even meant. We laughed over my initial angst regarding my tattoos that screamed, “Hi. I am NOT a Jew!” Then I was asked, “How did you do it? Find a way to belong?”

The answer came in the form of taking a risk; by getting involved in the community. I found my home in Sisterhood - A woman’s organization at TBI that is united in friendship, compassion, philanthropy, and awareness. In Sisterhood, I discovered an outlet for my inner baker, a home for my philanthropic ideas, a time to explore my spirituality and a tolerant space for my feminist beliefs. I found a piece of myself in my Sisters.

“You discover that your longings are universal longings, that you’re not lonely or isolated from anyone. You belong.” –F. Scott Fitzgerald

© 2014 DNKG Belonging; Originally printed in Kehillah April 2014