Walking to Caesaria by Hannah Szenes (1921-1944)
Hannah Szenes (the spelling is her native Hugarian -- in Hebrew Hana Senesh) is one of the best loved Israeli poets. Her most well known poem is halikha l'qesarya - Walking to Caesaria (a Roman ruin on the coast of Israel):
Lyrics (Hebrew):
Eli, eli
Shelo' yigamer l`olam
Hahol v'hayam
Rishrush shel hamayim
Braq hashamayim
T'filat ha'adam
Translation:
O Lord my God
I pray that these things never end
The sand and the sea
The rush of the waters
The crash of the heavens
The prayer of the heart
Here is what she wrote about that walk to Caesaria:
In the morning, I roam
through the ancient ruins; in the afternoon, I walk in the fields, or to be
more precise, on the land designated to become our fields. When I see with
what fury the foamy waves rush against the shore and how they become silent
and peaceful upon crashing against the sand, I think that our enthusiasm and
anger is not much different. As they roll, they are powerful and vigorous
and when they touch the shore, they break, they calm down and they begin to
play like small children on the golden sand.
