selected lyrics to Hebrew School songs, in anticipation of upcoming release.
irma, take off your coat
irma libov drives us to hebrew school
mondays wednesdays and thursdays
she coughs and she drives away
listening to 80s country
she keeps driving us for 7 years
the radio plays kenny rogers
it becomes part of the songs we sings
along with the song about the almond and the carob tree
irma reaches into her pocket
pulls out a pack of parliament lights
she points to the bottom of the pack
and says do you see these little stamps
my work is to iron them on
it’s so damn boring
i burn myself
while juice newton she reminds us that
knowin’it isn’t smart
knowin’it isn’t smart
. . .
decency
take a calf to the valley that’s neither plowed nor sown
should you not solve a murder that you could call your own
get the sons of Levi and all the people in town
break the neck of the heifer and pour the water down
to wash your hands
over its body
your hands are clean
over its body
and the priests all say
in an uncertain moan
our hands have not shed this blood
our eyes, not our own
…
yes hide a jerusalem back in your head
just like moses said the hot lead would make you turn red
you cry in your handkerchief, you cry on your bow
you cry on your girlfriend, you cry on the snow
you cry out in sadness for those you’ll never know
but do you cry for the calf for whom you delivered the blow
cause you washed your hands
over its body
your hands were clean
your diction shoddy
your eyes blind
your head heavy
the priests went home
sickly sons of Levi
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