Shmatas!

June 3, 1997

An angry critic exclaimed to me,

His disdain for my poetry.

"These Messianic sentiments are to me,

Dirty shmatas strewn for all to see!"

Now a "shmata" is in Yiddish,

A garment worn and tattered.

A dirty shmata even more,

should not be shown or scattered.

"Such revealing of the heart,

And Messianic views,

Are but a counterfeit to all,

Who see themselves as Jews!"

"Much better then to hide such verse,

Than to broadcast such a faith perverse!"

But what that man can't bear to see,

Is there within my poetry.

Besides the shmatas hanging there,

Are garments new this writer wears.

This garment is not made by man,

And cannot boast of human plan.

These clothes are but the righteousness,

Imparted forth to me.

That covers all my sinfulness,

And sets my spirit free.

So I proclaim to critics now,

"Come read my poetry!"

If shmatas all you're looking for,

That's all you'll ever see.