The below poem was written and presented on Jerusalem Day 2012 (Yom Yerushalayim 5772) in honor of my mother’s exhibit of Jerusalem paintings in Kehilat Moreshet Avraham in Jerusalem. It is inspired by the talmudic statement (Tractate Kiddushin 49b) that 10 measures of beauty were bestowed upon the world. 9 of them were given to Jerusalem and the tenth was given to the rest of the world. You can see my mother’s artwork at www.niraspitz.com

 

Nine Measures

 

Nine Measures of Beauty

Alive yet frozen

Captured yet free

The pixels of life

With the stroke of a brush.

 

Nine Measures of Wisdom

The wrinkles of a face

The age of a wall

Resuscitated with color

Eternalized by talent.

 

Nine Measures of Charity

Giving without taking

Listening without talking

The smile of a passerby

A coin for an artist.

 

Nine Measures of Love

The Eternal City reunites

Generations return

A spouse’s embrace

A mother’s hand.