I cry olive green tears now
A full cycle now completed
Or is time being wicked
Playing more cruel games
And in its wake,
In its monstrous hole
Empty hugs
Empty chairs
Empty beds
Empty wedding canopies
Empty milestones
Empty dreams
Empty hearts.
Another full cycle complete,
But really
Incomplete.
And what about tomorrow
And tomorrow
And tomorrow
How can we dip our sweet red apples blooming and blushing and not think of
two sweet red-haired boys
Meant to be running barefoot in the soft grassy playground
Stolen childhoods
Ripped and raw.
Another cycle complete
And yet
We are still completely incomplete.
Shattered and sore.
Broken and bruised.
I cry olive green tears now
And pray God will dry them soon.
Esti Rosen Snukal made aliyah in 2012 from Teaneck. She is the mother to four sons and an adopted mother to many lone soldiers. She lives in Chashmonaim and can be found walking her dog Ruby and listening to Idan Amedi.