Tisha B’av Lamentation
dedicated to our troubled youth

For the sadness and pain
I cry
For the broken relationships and shattered dreams
For expectations reputations justifications
I cry
For our boys and girls, confused and empty, I cry
That we’ve failed them – I cry
We’ve crushed and suffocated their spirits
The spark of God, hiding
For this I cry
Sweet son and daughter of Zion
Holy, pure and beautiful
Souls of snow and hearts of gold
For you I cry

For your pain, for your clouded eyes
For your friends who have left you
For the hurtful words said to you
For the schools that let you go
That couldn’t understand
And the job you couldn’t keep
For all the therapists who couldn’t help
For the piercings and substances that numb your pain

For the Holy Temple I cry
Because it was for everyone
God’s presence in exile
Just like you
Your soul wanders, alone, unwanted and unfulfilled
Imo anochi b’tzarah
I’m with you

For this I cry
For this I wail
For this I pray

When the princes and princesses of our nation
Shall once again be allowed
To discover their beauty
Their worth
Their value
Then I will know
Redemption