Before the Gates of Heaven Close

-Joel Moskowitz

On Yom Kippur

my daughter stands by my side

and I know –– she is taller than I.

I think of her smile,

her embrace of books,

and, before that,

her compactness.

Sometimes there is a startling

moment, sometimes a miracle,

before the Gates of Heaven

close.

I lifted her, years ago,

onto my shoulders. We sailed

into this sanctuary: the warm air,

eerie shadows, waves of final prayers.

Did she see the scrolls robed white?T

The thrice-curled ram’s horn wailed,

a long-lasting cry. She’ll carry

the notes past my short days.