by Julie Potiker (Sun Valley, ID)
Crammed onto a street corner in Ketchum, Idaho
Across the street from the huge bronze moose
in front of Silver Creek boutique
Draft horses pull covered wagons down Main Street
Hands waving from wagons
Waving from horseback at the crowds
Anticipating the arrival of the sheep
This annual event where they are the stars
Sprinting by the thousands through the streets
On this bright day–October 8th, 2023–
Eyes squinting under the brim
of my cowboy hat
I feel disconnected
As if I might float away
Like a lost balloon
My hand in my beloved’s
keeps me tethered
to the land
Hundreds of families
Grandparents, parents, children
Babies, fully engaged in the parade
Not noticing I’m weeping inside
How is it they are unaffected by
The hundreds of Israeli families—grandparents,
Parents, children, babies, butchered
burned tortured stolen raped, now at war?
On our 35th wedding anniversary
I’m trying to hold it all — the joy and the sorrow–
Because this too is happening
This too.
Julie Potiker, a former attorney, is a friend of animals and the earth, a certified Mindful Self-Compassion teacher, and founder of the Balanced Mind Meditation Center in La Jolla, California. She is a member of the teaching team at UCSD Center for Mindfulness. Her published books are Life Falls Apart But You Don’t Have To: mindful methods for staying calm in the midst of chaos, and SNAP! From Chaos to Calm, both available on Amazon and Audible. Her upcoming book is a poetry collection of mindfulness poems. She lives in San Diego, California. Visit her website to learn more about her and her work: https://mindfulmethodsforlife.com
The Jewish Writing Project 