Kinnah for the Azza Evacuees

Last Tisha B’av, I composed this Kinnah for the (then) impending evacuation of the Jewish residents of Azza. It has unfortunately been overshadowed by the latest battles in Lebanon. Perhaps I’ll find the inspiration (and perspiration) to write about the kidnapped soldiers (though that would be more appropriate for the 20th of Sivan, the anniversary of the Battle of Sultan Ya’aqub and the capture of Yehuda Katz, Zachary Baumel, and Zvi Feldman), but I don’t think of this current war as a ‘tragedy’, and I hopefully never will.

If there’s an actual interest in using this in shuls, let me know, and please use משה אליעזר בן יצחק אהרן as the author’s name.

Last years composition also doesn’t reflect the ongoing struggles that the evacuees continue to face. Certain parts of it, such as a veiled reference to Ariel Sharon and a prayer for the mending of the rifts in Israeli society seem, for better or worse, somewhat obsolete.

On a more ‘academic’ note, there’s this post about Bialik’s use of imagery from Eicha and from Haftarat Nachamu in his poem ‘Al Saf Beit Ha-Midrash’.