COVID 19, a Corona Fire Out of Control
Plans laid doors shut / I won’t be called “the one who lit the fire”
There is a fire raging outside / not yet burning down my house
But a bit of flame may be stuck to me / people live in fear of what I might spread
The danger is clear / the future unknown
My experience recognized by the Sages / 2000 years ago encouraging words “prevent damages”
When there is contagion in the city / one should shut himself in his home
For fear of the Angel of Death / brazenly controlling the main roads, says the Bava Kama
A time so dangerous to open the doors of beloved places / precisely when people most want to be here, there, with each other
In moments of fear and uncertainty longing to open our hearts / the company of others must be denied
Even when famine threatens / the responsibility of each who lights a fire grows bright
Fire is central to our lives / lighting Shabbat candles ushers in
Then the first thing done when Shabbat is over / expressing the centrality of fire in our daily activities
“When a fire is started and spreads to thorns / he who started the fire must make restitution” (Exodus 22:5)
But what if there was no intention to harm / what if the spread was accidental?
What if it travels unseen … regardless he is called / “the one who lit the fire”
Reach out and call / individuals in compliance with the law
Think about those in need / though we no longer see those needs in person
Each responsible no one can say / “I blame the quarantine”
