Nadav and Avihu

Waiting in the wings

these sibling priests 

the children of Aaron

they prepare their firepans 

which I imagine like 

cans of Boy Scout sterno

they know what it said 

in the Scout manual 

but wouldn't it be cool 

if we toss in some tree sap

a pine cone and this leaf?!

So they rush forward 

toward the Divine Mother 

saying, "Look! Look!

We made this ourselves! 

We made it just for You!" 

She looks! And opens wide 

Her sacred arms to 

scoop them up into Oneness

leaving superfluous shells 

behind on an earthen stage 

before the stunned playwright

and mortified director

the audience not sure 

whether to applaud or scream

as the Mother and children unite

dancing on air above the altar

Uncle Moshe instructs the 

cousins to remove the husks

in the static of their father's silence

so that the show can go on