Shavuot
Ruth—look, how our garden has grown.
Basil bushels in our backyard,
stems entwined from weeks of nurture, rest.
Leaves yawn,
roots stretch
the sleep from their limbs.
Our porch, a museum of color.
Amber petals backbend, heaven-facing,
crimson glints
under morning rays,
emerald leaves embrace
cardinal sprouts—
a celebration
we observe from our corridor.
We extol behind covering.
This feast of weeks—these four walls, our Earth.
The sweetness of health
is in orange slices,
the richness of life
in cheese and cherry wine.
Masks muffle our songs, Ruth,
but we savor the honey of
hallelujah between breaths.