The Days of Awe are a time for introspection and self-assessment in anticipation of repentance, forgiveness, thanksgiving and rejoicing. This rhythm binds who we are now to who we will become. It frees us from everything that holds us back. It is a season of healing. This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press.

The Season of Healing
This is the season of healing:
Of healing our hearts and minds,
Of healing the moments we share with each other
And the moments we share with ourselves.

This is the season of memory:
Of remembering our parents and grandparents,
The love of generations,
The holiness of our ancestors.

This is the season of stillness,
The season of silence and quiet:
Of deep breaths,
Of open eyes,
Of compassion and consolation.

This is the season of healing:
The season of grief turning to wonder,
Of loss turning toward hope,
The season that binds this year to the next,
The season that frees this year from the next,
The season that heralds the redemption of spirit
And our return to God’s Holy Word.

© 2017 CCAR Press from This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day.

Postscript: This piece appears in This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press. Here’s a link to other prayers for the Yamim Noraim, the High Holy Days.

Please check out my ELItalk video, “Falling in Love with Prayer,” and This Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day. For reprint permissions and usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” To receive my latest prayers via email, please subscribe (on the home page). You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.

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Tags: faith, gifts, healing, joy, prayers for Elul, redemption, renewal, Rosh Hashana, spirit, Torah, Yom Kippur