Hearken, O ye house of Israel, all ye that are broken off and are driven out because of the wickedness of the pastors of my people; yea, all ye that are broken off, that are scattered abroad, who are of my people, O house of Israel. Listen, O isles, unto me, and hearken ye people from far.
Thus saith the Lord: In an acceptable time have I heard thee, O isles of the sea, and in a day of salvation have I helped thee; and I will preserve thee, and I will cause thee to inherit the desolate heritages.
And he sayest uno the prisoners: Go forth; to them that sit in darkness: Show yourselves. Ye shall feed in the ways, and thy pastures shall be in all high places. Thou shalt not hunger nor thirst, neither shall the heat nor the sun smite thee; for I have mercy on thee, and shall lead thee, even by the springs of water shall I guide thee. And I will make all my mountains a way, and my highways shall be exalted.
Behold, I have graven thee upon the palms of my hands; thy walls are continually before me. Thy children shall make haste against thy destroyers; and they that made thee waste shall go forth of thee. Lift up thine eyes round about and behold; all these gather themselves together, and they shall come to thee. And as I live, saith the Lord, thou shalt surely clothe thee with them all, as with an ornament, and bind them on even as a bride. For thy waste and thy desolate places, and the land of thy destruction, shall even now be too narrow by reason of the inhabitants; and they that swallowed thee up shall be far away.
Then shalt thou say in thine heart: Who hath begotten me these, seeing I have lost my children, and am desolate, a captive, and removing to and fro? And who hath brought up these? Behold, I was left alone; these, where have they been? Thus saith the Lord God: Behold, I will lift up mine hand to the Gentiles, and set up my standard to the people; and they shall bring thy sons in their arms, and thy daughters shall be carried upon their shoulders.
For shall the prey be taken from the mighty, or the lawful captives delivered? But thus saith the Lord, even the captives of the mighty shall be taken away, and the prey of the terrible shall be delivered; for I will contend with him that contendeth with thee, and I will save thy children.
And the Lord is near, and he justifieth me. Who will contend with me? Let us stand together. Who is mine adversary? Let him come near me, and I will smite him with the strength of my mouth. For the Lord God will help me. And all they who shall condemn me, behold, all they shall wax old as a garment, and the moth shall eat them up. Who is among you that feareth the Lord, that obeyeth the voice of his servant, that walketh in darkness and hath no light?
The Lord God hath given me the tongue of the learned, that I should know how to speak a word in season unto thee, O house of Israel. When ye are weary he waketh morning by morning. He waketh mine ear to hear as the learned. The Lord God hath opened mine ear, and I was not rebellious, neither turned away back. I gave my back to the smiter, and I hid not my face from shame. For the Lord God will help me, therefore shall I not be confounded. Therefore have I set my face like a flint, and I know that I shall not be ashamed.
Sing, O heavens; and be joyful, O earth; for the feet of those who are in the east shall be established; and break forth into singing, O mountains; for they shall be smitten no more; for the Lord hath comforted his people, and will have mercy upon his afflicted. Awake, awake again, and put on thy strength, O Zion; put on thy beautiful garments!
THE VISION
I was walking along the top of a steep canyon. At the bottom was a swift-moving brown river (like the Colorado in the Grand Canyon). There, on the bank of the river was a man, who appeared to have been drowning in the water. I ran down to him, and he was still alive, but was suffering from something… I think it was from swallowing the filthy water. He spoke with a garbled, hoarse voice as if he had been calling out for help.
We (there were others with me) brought him up to the top of the canyon and gave him a blessing, except it was different than any other blessing I had ever given. Normally, when I give a blessing, I listen for what I should say, then hope it turns out okay. In this blessing, though, I knew what to say from the beginning. No listening. And what I said was more instructional to the recipient than anything else. I told him that if he did as directed, he would be healed for life, and impervious to that ailment forever. As I said the words, it’s as if they took on a physical attribute… almost like a law (of physics). I don’t know how else to describe it.
The man, who I didn't recognize, yet I loved completely, was skinny, haggard, missing a tooth, and dressed in ripped clothing when I pulled him out of the water. He did as instructed in the blessing and the next time I saw him, we embraced. He was now wearing clean, pressed clothing and was beaming with joy. His face was radiant and glowed with a perfect smile (all teeth intact). I wasn't surprised that he was healed though, because I KNEW it was to be. Also, it seems that he was carrying something with him, but I couldn't tell what.
THE SONG
can you hear the road from this place?
can you hear footsteps? voices?
can you see the blood on my sleeve?
i have fallen in the forest,
did you hear me?
in the loneliness?
oh, the loneliness
and the scream to prove
to everyone
that i exist
in the loneliness
oh, the loneliness
and the scream to bring
the blood to the front of my face againnn
am i here? of course i am, yes
all i need is your hand
to drag me out again
it wasn't me,
i didn't dig this ditch
i was walking for weeks
before i fell in
to the loneliness
oh, the loneliness
and the scream to prove
to everyone
that i exist
in the loneliness
oh, the loneliness
and the scream to fill
a thousand black
balloons with air
fall down, find god
just to lose it again
glue the community together
we were hammering it
fell down, found love
but i can’t lose it again
but now our communal heart
it beats miles from here
Vignettes:
The Marriage of Figaro: Duetto-Sul Aria
Ring of Fire
Bohemian Rhapsody
HELP!
The Windmill
