orichalcum

velveteenrabbi.blogs.com/, a Jewish spirituality/religion blog written by Rachel Barenblat, a friend of friends like pseudosilence , has been named one of Time's Best 25 Blogs of 2009! 

In celebration, a quote from one of her poems that I like: (huh, I've been really into religious texts lately. Must be February. I get that way in September, February, and April.)

THE PSALM I SING (BESHALACH) --Rachel Barenblat

I don't want to sing to the Lord
who has triumphed gloriously
horse and driver hurled into the sea

I don't want to say
this is my God and I will enshrine him
the God of my father, and I will exalt him

not if that means celebrating
when the floodwaters or the bombs
have left their bodies bent and bloodied

even if they were cruel taskmasters
even if they hit us first
even if they are not like us at all

the psalm I sing says
God does not turn God's back
on any part of creation

the psalm I sing says
the God who plays favorites
does not find favor in my eyes

I praise God who thundered at the angels
for daring to rejoice
when God's children were drowning

God who demands we wake up
face what we have permitted
bandage the bleeding with our own hands.

To cheer my friends' list up:

Mac's opinion of Valentine's Day: "Valentine's Day is when Thomas the Tank Engine kisses the dump truck!"
(Let no one say I'm raising my kid heteronormatively!)

Mac's new word: "Truffle." As in "I want a truffle for breakfast!" pointing at the V-day candy I bought for myself. I blame ladybird97 .

Cool teaching thing of the day:
Moving past the Assyrian kings (Ashurbanipal, say) who boast about how many people they've impaled on sticks to discussing the kings (Cyrus the Great) who boast about how many dilapidated houses of their new subjects they've repaired.

We went hiking on Saturday with  contrariety and J., and Eowyn discovered her new talent of cowherding! She's very proud of herself.