circumcise your heart
said the Sages
with your very own hand
cut away the armor you donned
to numb the pain that life has trained you to flee
turn in the direction of the sun and keep walking
let it warm your freshly opened heart
the shadows will be behind you
pain is not a problem to be solved
like joy, it has a tender message:
you are alive on this Earth
circumcise your heart
they said
or you will feel nothing at all.
[Written after This Morning I Pray for My Enemies by Jo Harjo, and Deuteronomy 10:16]