My mother created a gorgeous tallit for me, and this poem was a thank you to her… A tallit is a Jewish ritual prayer shawl, worn during a prayer service. In our community, when we recite the Priestly Blessing ("May the Lord bless you and keep you…") we wrap our tallitot around the shoulders of those standing next to us, understanding that it is not priests or rabbis who are the bestowers of blessing, but we to each other. My mother and father together made tallits for each of my children as they came of age. Being far beyond the coming of age, I did not feel I could ask for one of my very own (which I never had). When I did, my mother created a gorgeous one for me. I picture her working on it: an ancient tribeswoman, an artist, whose hands and vision bring about miracles. Tallit And the daughter who was herself beyond two score and ten saw that the woman’s fingers had begun to twist...
Women's Spiritual Poetry