milt montague,
born in new york in 1924, survived Great Depression, school, world war
2. fell in love, married, raised three wonderful daughters, retired.
back at college poetry was his new love. in just over 2 years, 46 of
his poems were published by 14 different magazines.
1300 BC
the Cretan palace complexes after 400 years of abject slavery
once reigned supreme as in Egypt the Hebrew tribes
isolated self contained were set free by Moses
pockets of nascent civilization their charismatic leader
in a stone age world by inflicting upon Pharoah
now were in ruins ten horrendous plagues
destroyed by unknown invaders under orders of their God
a remnant escaped to the mainland YAWAH their God
fathering the Greek civilization promised to lead them
most disappeared in the destruction into a land of their own
as did their language and history flowing with milk and honey
recently a few tablets were dug up providing they live up to
called Linear B they are unreadable his new strict moral code
still sleeping after three millennia unheard of in those days
castrating one evolving bud to become the very first
only slowing but not and subsequent progenitor
denying the supremacy of all monotheistic
of the primal force religions in this world
Eitan's Bar Mitzvah
Last week our family
Assembled in a temple
To fulfill a biblical command
To fulfill a biblical command
As my grandson Eitan
Was invested with
Was invested with
The rites of Manhood
In our ancient religion
As did his forefather
In our ancient religion
As did his forefather
Fifty generations ago
During The Crusades
During The Crusades
As did his forefather
Fifty generations earlier
As BC morphed to AD
As BC morphed to AD
As did his forefather
Fifty generations earlier
In the days of King David
We all rose and chanted
In the days of King David
We all rose and chanted
in the same Aramaic
Our ancestors have
Our ancestors have
For three thousand years
prayers to The Almighty
For Eitan’s success
For Eitan’s success
As he became a Man
Standing tall on the rostrum
Ennobled by prayer shawl
Amid our hallowed scriptures
Amid our hallowed scriptures
Led by our Holy Men
He accepted with awe and respect
His relationship to God and family
As a newly ordained Adult Man
He accepted with awe and respect
His relationship to God and family
As a newly ordained Adult Man
golem
the golem was an anthropomorphic
super being created from mud
in 16th century Prague by Rabbi Loew
to protect the jewish community
from total destruction
today hungers for a new golem
to save our nation by
wresting control from the diehards
in congress bent
on destroying the very system
that empowered them
our most carefully honed network
of checks and balances created
and improved upon over a
two hundred year span
is now at risk of total destruction
dismembering the programs
that made this country
the most prosperous and
powerful in the world
can only lead to ruination
of our once great nation
~Milton Montague
