In My Tel-Aviv Apartment השתקעות בדירתי בת”א

This week’s song has been in the works for 30 years! The words were written by my mom in January of 1981 when she was still in her twenties. Partially as birthday gift to her, and partially as a really interesting experiment for me, I took her poem and set it to music.

If you understand Hebrew, the reason I’m singing in the feminine voice is, like I said, that this was written by my mom. If you don’t understand Hebrew, I’m attaching a copy of the lyrics along with a rough translation… just so you get the gist. Enjoy!

Peace,
Eran

In My Tel-Aviv Apartment

original lyrics

You want me to be a floor tile
“everybody works,” you say
regular hours everyday, square by square
and only a thin line of earth separates

You want me to be the wall
“So you’ll have a solid base,” you say.
The price ceiling is rising, we need to get there.
white, straight, not protruding too much.

You want me to be the door
“You’ll be able to get up and go whenever you wish,” you say.
Only, you’ll have a spot to hold on to, a place of your own
to open and close, with the turn of a knob.

And I say, “I just want to be a night lamp
and know all the little secrets.”
Let the shadows elongate and blur the ugly corners
of the face, the hands, the centers of desire.
Be hot, intense
and burn.

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