Rosh Hashanah Opening Prayer:
Thanks to Rabbi Maralee Gordon for pointing me in the direction of this lovely poem by John O'Donohue:
A Morning Offering
I bless the night that nourished my heart
To set the ghosts of longing free
Into the flow and figure of dream
That went to harvest from the dark
Bread for the hunger no one sees.
To set the ghosts of longing free
Into the flow and figure of dream
That went to harvest from the dark
Bread for the hunger no one sees.
All that is eternal in me
Welcome the wonder of this day,
The field of brightness it creates
Offering time for each thing
To arise and illuminate.
Welcome the wonder of this day,
The field of brightness it creates
Offering time for each thing
To arise and illuminate.
I place on the altar of dawn:
The quiet loyalty of breath,
The tent of thought where I shelter,
Wave of desire I am shore to
And all beauty drawn to the eye.
The quiet loyalty of breath,
The tent of thought where I shelter,
Wave of desire I am shore to
And all beauty drawn to the eye.
May my mind come alive today
To the invisible geography
That invites me to new frontiers,
To break the dead shell of yesterdays,
To risk being disturbed and changed.
To the invisible geography
That invites me to new frontiers,
To break the dead shell of yesterdays,
To risk being disturbed and changed.
May I have the courage today
To live the life that I would love,
To postpone my dream no longer
But do at last what I came here for
And waste my heart on fear no more.
To live the life that I would love,
To postpone my dream no longer
But do at last what I came here for
And waste my heart on fear no more.
The book in which this poem is found:
http://www.amazon.com/To-Bless-Space-Between-Blessings/dp/0385522274
Rosh Hashanah Closing Benediction:
Thanks to Rabbi Lauren Gabrielle Hermann for sharing these words.
A Rosh Hashanah Blessing by Alan Zoldan
May you be inscribed in the Book of Unsung Everyday Heroes
and may you be written in tear-streaked water colors in the Book of Compassion.
May your page in the Book of Menschlicheit never know from wine stains,
and may your entry in the Book of Those Who Take the Time to Listen & See be as spectacular as the summer’s last rose.
May you be acknowledged in the Book of Those Who Enjoy Books & in The Book of Happy Endings, and may your listing in the Book of Those with Inner Strength be big and bold.
May you believe deep in your heart that there is a Book of Faith
with your name on a page that you will never see.
May your name be written in glowing coals in the Book of Fiery Letters
and in tiny raindrops on the spider-web pages of The Book of Dew.
May your name be written again and again, for all blessings given and received, hidden and obvious, fleeting and forever, like the memories of honey on your tongue.
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