H e a r t S o n s & H e a r t D a u g h t e r s of A l l e n G i n s b e r g

N a p a l m H e a l t h S p a : R e p o r t 2 0 1 4 : A r c h i v e s E d i t i o n

LESLÉA NEWMAN

The Wood Gatherer Speaks

Once when the Israelites were in the wilderness,

they came upon a man gathering wood on the

sabbath day. Those who found him as he was

gathering wood brought him before Moses, Aaron

and the whole community. He was placed in

custody, for it had not been specified what should

be done to him. Then the Lord said to Moses, “The

man shall be put to death: the whole community

shall pelt him with stones outside the camp.” So

the whole community took him outside the camp

and stoned him to death—as the Lord had

commanded Moses. (Numbers 15:32-15:36)

It was a sunny day

It was a cloudy day

It was early morning

It was late afternoon

I was gathering wood to build a fire

to warm myself

I was gathering wood to build a fire

to cook myself a meal

I was gathering wood to build a fire

that was never lit

yet burns for all time

I still tasted the bitterness of slavery

and did not care about keeping the Sabbath

I cared about keeping the Sabbath so much

I sacrificed my life so others would remember

I was selfish

I was self-less

Some say my name is Tzelofechad

and my five brave daughters

Machlah, No’ah, Choglah, Milkah and Tirtzah

are my legacy

Others insist I am a nameless man

known only for the worst thing I did

on the worst day of my life

Here is the truth:

I was gathering wood on the Sabbath Day

I was warned three times to stop

I was gathering wood on the Sabbath Day

no one said a word

I was brought before Moses and Aaron

They put me in custody

Then Moses spoke with God

God said to Moses, Remember the Sabbath Day and keep it holy

God said to Moses Thou shalt not kill

God said to Moses Take this man outside the camp

Have the whole community stone him to death

Moses said to God

Pardon the iniquity of this man

according to Your great kindness

as You have forgiven the people Israel

ever since Egypt

Moses said: nothing

When I heard my fate

I stood still as a stone

I was struck first

by a rock

the size of the apple

Eve shared with Adam

I was struck first

by a small pebble

that was later placed

on my grave

The first stone

was thrown

by the hand of a stranger

The first stone

was thrown

by the hand of a friend

The first stone

was thrown

by the hand of my daughter

The first stone

was thrown

b’ yad Moshe

The stones came hard and fast as rain

The stones came slowly, a lifetime apart

I stood upright

I fell to the ground

I cursed God

whom I did not believe in

I prayed to God

whom I loved with all my heart

As I lie on the earth

bruised and broken

a grasshopper leapt near my face

looked into my eyes

and sang a song so sweet

it broke my heart

and healed it

The grasshopper died beside me

The grasshopper hopped away

My life ended thousands of years ago

I am alive today

I gather wood on the scrolls of your Torah

I dance on the fringes of your tzitzit

I wander through the corners of your mind

as you sit in shul on Shabbat

and contemplate

the meaning of your life

the meaning of mine

[Poem reprinted with permission of the author from Nobody’s Mother, Orchard House Press, 2008. Originally published in NHS 2009, http://www.poetspath.com/napalm/nhs09/Leslea_Newman.htm.]