Essays, Memoirs, and True Stories
In Pieces
Rabbi Nachman had a special dish which he used for the Sabbath loaves. It had belonged to his own master, Rabbi Lev of Grenoble, and it occupied a prominent place in his home.
Rabbi Nachman had a special dish which he used for the Sabbath loaves. It had belonged to his own master, Rabbi Lev of Grenoble, and it occupied a prominent place in his home.
The little button lying in my hand brought the violent history of the place to life. For a moment war wasn’t just pictures in textbooks. I could feel the residue of it, the half-life of violence.
I suggest that a powerful antidote to the manufactured past now being created for us is the secret history of Indians in the twentieth century. Geronimo really did have a Cadillac and used to drive it to church, where he’d sign autographs.
Guess which of your organs recognize it. Guess whether it is welcomed to their temples. Guess how it figures in their prayers. Guess how completely you become what you eat. Guess how soon.
If you are more close to the dying than you would like to be, then it is time for the sky to …
I was dressed and ready for church, waiting while the others bustled about in preparation, when a sudden conviction took hold of me: “I’m not going,” I told my mother.
We need always to be thinking and writing about poverty, for if we are not among its victims its reality fades from us. We must talk about poverty, because people insulated by their own comfort lose sight of it.
Eschew blandness. Eschew causing others pain. We are all the target so wear bright colors and dance with those you love.
