A POEM HIGHLIGHTING WHOLENESS

When Will I Be Myself Again? by Rabbi Lewis John Eron—Jewish Community Chaplain for the Jewish Federation of Southern New Jersey

“When will I be myself again?”

Some Tuesday, perhaps, in the late afternoon, Sitting quietly with a cup of tea,

And a cookie;

Or Wednesday, same time or later,

You will stir from a nap and see her;

You will pick up the phone to call her;

You will hear her voice – unexpected advice – And maybe argue.

And you will not be frightened, And you will not be sad,

And you will not be alone,

Not alone at all,

And your tears will warm you.

But not today,

And not tomorrow,

And not tomorrow’s tomorrow,

But some day,

Some Tuesday, late in the afternoon, Sitting quietly with a cup of tea, And a cookie;

And you will be (wholly) yourself again.

Though penned about recovering after a loved one’s death, this poem spoke to me ever so personally as I await—not my death but rather the recovery of energy so as to feel like myself, pre-cancer.  Though I know that’s not to be, my indomitable love of life cannot believe I’ll never again feel free of illness and fatigue so as to run and play vigorously … seriously—how can that be true of one whose mind and spirit prove as lively as mine no matter how attached my ailing body has been to my bed …

To my good fortune, my mind and spirit continue to feel independently free of disease and despair, and thus do two thirds of my whole remain as healthy as is true of my soul

Annie