Exile and Longing

 
The Art is printed on giclee acid-free matte paper. 
 
Sizes Available
Small  16"x20"
 
 
The Art
 
The following is a poem mixed with thoughts about Sefiras intentions behind this piece. 
 
I find that loneliness is a burden.
Too heavy to hold alone.
And yet, when experiencing that depth of loneliness, there may be no one around to help.
As it is in 2019, I look around the world and I ask
How?
How is it that we’ve come so far and yet it doesn’t add up to “far enough?” My experience of being a Jew in 2019 is lonely.
It’s lonely living in a city that doesn’t understand who I am and why I do what I do.
It’s lonely living in a world that continuously denies our heritage.
It’s lonely living amongst my people who sometimes can’t even agree to disagree. 
I don’t think it’s just me, who waits around for the other shoe to drop. Who dances around with light feet, trying not to trigger hate. Smile at the cashier worker, because he knows I’m Jewish and if I don’t smile, he’ll think we’re all bad people. Don’t talk about not having money, because then they’ll think I’m being cheap. Make sure your child is in line and respectful, otherwise they’ll think I’m an insufficient mother. Don’t make comments on Israeli politics, otherwise, they’ll say we have dual loyalties.
 
Yesterday was the 17th day of the Hebrew month of Tammuz. In the year 69 CE, the Romans sieges Jerusalem and beached the walls. It’s the most impactful day in Jewish history as it marks the beginning of our exile. In 3 weeks our holy temple will be destroyed, and we will lose control over our holiest city until 1967. You do the math, it’s something close to 2,000 years + of exile.
 
Maybe an image can describe what words cannot.

Where the feelings of incompletion intersect with hope. When destruction is met with innocence. How loss creates chances for renewal. That is what I was trying to express in this piece. Feelings of fear, Hope, and determination which reside in us every day. Sometimes looking incomplete close up, but the bigger picture always tells the whole story.