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I had the zechus to speak about three of the kinnos (23, 24, and 25) at my shul for Tisha B'Av.

Consider the future & analyze the past,

Because there might be something that needs to be rehashed.

Moshe and Aaron feared,

The two drops of oil that hung on Aaron's beard!

Har Sinai was our Nation's beginning,

It should give us a constant fear of sinning.

Hashem's greatness makes the Chayos quiver,

Their sweat creates a fiery river.

The more you know,

The more you realize how much you have to grow.

Good advice is worth any price!

By practicing a lot,

We can become humble מעט מעט.

Since our minds are far from precise,

A wise man always seeks advice!

A humble person is very pleasant,

And has a natural fear of the Omnipresent.

Leadership can cause your ego to feel inflated,

To prevent that, honor must be hated!

Bring sweetness to the way you talk,

And humility in the way you walk.

Don't give yourself glory with the king around,

It is better to be told "come up" than "go down!"

Use your talents, while acknowledging their source,

If the avos were humble, how lowly we are, of course.

You won't be able to feel all high and mighty,

When you realize all your skills are a gift from the Almighty!

No matter your abilities, you need to stay humble,

Even the wisest among us still stumble.

The higher the level a person may reach,

The more they are required to teach!

Many of life's satisfactions,

Can lead to endless distractions.

The proper way to connect,

Is to have time to really reflect.

Rebuke must be in the right time and place,

Chasidus shouldn't lead to disgrace.

At every turn, a chasid weighs what's right,

And is willing to step away to avoid a fight.

Being a Chasid can lead you astray,

Always question if you're going the right way.

Gedalia didn't listen to the information provided,

His downfall was because his chasidus was misguided.

A chasid prays for his generation,

And years for divine revelation.

No one should doubt their own unique ability,

To step up and take responsibility!

Evil can't be ignored,

Justice must be restored.

There is nothing greater,

Than someone who does chesed for the Creator!

A snake bit Rebbi Chanina, but he didn't feel it,

If love is fierce, you can't conceal it.

Dovid HaMelech's love for Hashem was so strong,

His fingers played the harp, while his lips moved in song!

Giving praise for something you love feels nice,

One way to show commitment is through sacrifice.

Even the difficulties that can't be understood,

Know that everything is ultimately for the good!

The Ramchal tells us how far our honor for Shabbos goes,

Rav Anan wore black on Fridays to contrast with his Shabbos clothes.

The wicked Achav merited to be king for so long,

Because the Holy Torah, he refused to pass along.

We should try to go above and beyond our minimum duty,

& infuse the mitzvos with beauty!

To show how far kavod goes,

Eisav only served Yitzchak in royal clothes!

The Ramchal has many big ideas,

Like how to be a Chasid in עֲשִׂיָה

To daven with true devotion,

Yirah has to develop first in the emotions!

In the same way we judge others, we will be judged,

So don't hate or hold a grudge.

Give tzadaka and freely lend,

It is with chesed that the Torah begins and ends!

The chuchamim discuss why they lived a long life,

Rebbi Zeira was careful with his family to avoid strife.

A chasid goes above and beyond,

He weighs his options before he responds!

Going above and beyond is the goal,

With your fellow, be nosei b'ol,

A chasid chases after peace,

For every mitzva, there are ways to increase!

You know your lover's wants without explicit instruction,

And you know what they need merely through deduction.

Chasidus is not external,

It means studying the inner workings of the Eternal.

To have pure motivations,

Mitzvos need preparations.

Do mitzvos while avoiding praise,

And consider what worldly pleasure truly pays.

Doing mitzvos is a great start,

But ultimately Hashem wants our heart.

It matters what goes on in our minds,

Because even emotions have to be refined.

Don't do mitzvos in order to deceive,

And don't do mitzvos just for the reward you'll receive.

If you are impacted by praise,

There's still room to improve your ways!

Pleasure is deceptive and fleeting,

The shortest-lived pleasure is eating.

Worldly enjoyment is usually overblown,

The only way to have Prishus is by spending time alone.

You should be part of society,

But have time alone for piety.

It is a good thing to be strict,

But balanced by values that might conflict.

The type of prishus that Chazal recommended,

Is to find ways to avoid being tested.

With everything kosher, you can still overeat,

Enjoy the essentials, but stay away from the treats!

Perishus is seperating yourself from the croud,

By holding back from what you are allowed.

The world is here for us to enjoy,

But too much indulgence can destroy!

Learning Torah leads to action,

And gives you deep satisfaction.

You have to learn what Torah entails,

And constantly review its many details!

Tayva is bad, but kavod is more destructive,

Jealosy, lust, and honor are seductive, not productive.

If you are committed to nekiyus in your mind,

Your actions will follow closely behind.

When a person is consumed by כעס,

They become irrational, without any דעת.

Be weary of wanting what other's own,

Since jealousy will rot your bones!

Without humility,

It is hard to live a life of tranquility.

Gay'va is something everyone can stumble,

Even those that appear to be humble!

In order to go out to war,

You had to be a naki to your core!

Hilchos Shabbos has many details,

Don't make or even talk about business sales!

Be careful about making a false oath,

Our midos have to follow our torah growth.

Stay far away from lies,

Be a kiddush hashem in everyone's eyes.

If someone asks you for advice,

Your answer needs to be precise.

If someone wrongs us, it is hard to budge,

But the Torah instructs us not to hold a grudge.

It is crucial to be careful with food,

And to go out of our way not to be rude!

Hurtful speech can cause so much pain,

Money can be returned, but words remain!

To be pious,

You must avoid all things related to arayos.

To steer clear of sin, we need many fences,

We need to be careful about all of our senses.

Business laws have many nuances to understand,

Theft has a way of sticking to our hands.

The desire for money is very appealing,

So we must be extra careful to avoid stealing.

It is easy to avoid the most obscene,

But from the small sins, we also need to be clean.

Avak lashon hara is an example,

Of the types of sins easiest to trample.

Stay focused, don't let comforts interfere,

And don't be consumed by irrational fears.

On our mission to become more complete,

We can't be worried about a lion in the street!

When you recognize the טוֹב,

You'll realize that you owe a great חוֹב!

Hashem gives us our needs that are unique,

Zehirus and zerizus share the same techniques.

As the seconds tick by,

A mitzvah might pass by.

Zerizus is required,

To build your desire!

Just a little laziness, we can lose our way,

Doing nothing will lead to decay.

We need zerizus to be at our best,

Because an object at rest will remain at rest!

You can throw away your whole life's goal,

With one small quip or an eye roll.

Most of your actions depend,

On who you chose to be your friends.

We can get so busy that our time goes down the sink,

Not leaving us any time to think.

The yetzer hara has a strong allure,

The yetzer hara is the illness, and the Torah is the cure!

Hashem never overlooks a good or bad deed,

Even the rightous, punishment can be decreed.

The world cannot stand only on דין,

So hashem allows us to repent for our sins.

To get zehirus, learning Torah is essential,

A fire burns within us to reach our full potential.

It is too late once we are in the grave,

So now is the time to work on how we behave!

This world is compared to a confusing maze,

The only way to succeed is to consider our ways.

Without contemplation, our world can be dark,

But the Torah can provide us with a much-needed spark!