This prayer celebrates the blessings in my life, in our lives. To listen along as you read, please click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
These Blessings
For the blessings in our lives,
The blessings of our lives,
And the blessings of the people who are part of our lives,
We give thanks.
These gifts heal:
Silence, stillness, enthusiasm and joyful noise.
Awareness, insight, energy and resources.
The gifts of parents and children,
Of students and teachers.
These blessings nurture:
Joy, gratitude, freedom and bravery.
Trust, strength, humor and sweetness.
The blessings of honesty and kindness,
Of faith and love.
For the gifts and blessings of our lives
We sing and dance,
We shout and laugh,
And we pledge our lives in service to each other,
In celebration, in wonder and in awe.
Praised are You, G-d our Maker,
Source of gifts and blessings.
Postscript: Here’s another prayer with a similar theme: “An Amazing Life.”
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I took buses in the wrong direction in Jerusalem twice today. The second time I landed at a bus stop an hour from my destination. I met Abebe, a 21-year-old Ethiopian yeshiva student. We talked. When he found out I was going to The Kotel he decided to come with. We walked through the Old City together at night, davened ma’ariv at the Wall and he insisted on buying dinner, schwarma with chips. As the evening ended, I asked him if there was anything I could do for him. He asked me to bless him. I did. And so we were both blessed.
On the 10th night of our 12-day journey around Mount Rainier, Gary, Michael and I met two women at the shelter at Indian Bar. We had a blast. It was a great night of camaraderie and story-telling after a long, harrowing and ultimately triumphant day on the trail.
These moments of instant connection with strangers-who-aren’t-strangers are abundant in my life. And they surprise me every time. This traveler’s prayer celebrates the companions we meet along the way. My other prayers for travel are: “For Travel” and “On the Trail.”
To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
On the Road
G-d of the wayfarer, the traveler, the seeker,
G-d of the inner journey and the outer journey,
Holy One who sends us out to find holiness and light,
Thank You for the gift of kindness from strangers,
The presence of help on the path
And guidance along the way.
With Your loving hand
You provide signs and signals
To those who are willing to listen and to hear.
G-d of mystery and secrets,
The path has its dangers,
The road has its joys and struggles
And at times You seem too distant to reach.
For the struggles ahead we turn to You for comfort.
For the blessings of hope and joy,
Succor along the way,
We give thanks.
Blessed is the G-d of All,
You who provides fellow travelers on the journey out and the journey home,
Give me the opportunity and willingness to be of service to others along the way.
Blessed are You, G-d who provides companions on the journey home.
Postscript: For two more traveler’s prayers, check out: “For Travel” and “On the Trail.”
For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect on Facebook and Twitter.If you like this prayer, please post a link to Facebook, your blog or mention it in a tweet. Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing.
About the Rainbow
Majestic Sovereign,
Source of beauty,
When did You decide
To create the rainbow?
Was this Your design?
Or perhaps it was a
Fantastic discovery
The moment Your Divine Light
Burst through the firmament of heaven?
Did You know that
Your Glory
Could be refracted
Through a simple lens of water?
Or were awe and wonder created
When You first saw
Your own colors,
When You gasped
At Your own brilliant light
Arching across a deep blue sky?
This is a prayer for writers and orators, another in my series of creativity prayers, including “For the Gift of Song,” which describes the common framework used in this series. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
For the Gift of Words
G-d, we give thanks for the gift of words,
The gift of language,
The gift of insight and emotion,
The gift of sacred communion through communication.
For it was You who spoke and the world came into being.
It was You who carved tablets on the holy mountain.
Hear this prayer for those who write to explore the mysteries of creation.
Hear this prayer for those who speak to unlock Your divine secrets.
Make their words Your vessel.
Let heaven pour wisdom and love through them
So that they overflow with Your glory,
Drawing others to Your truths.
So that when we hear these words
Our souls turn back to You in love.
Together, we offer our insights back to heaven,
And rejoice.
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This is a prayer about love, not for love. The hope inside this prayer is remember how to love. Good for any season, it also fits for the first week of Counting the Omer, Chesed: love, lovingkindness, benevolence. I read it on the first day of the Omer when the focus is on the love aspect of love.
For An Open Heart
G-d, give me an open heart,
A generous heart,
A humble heart.
Give me a heart so free,
So fearless,
That I offer love without requirement,
To love as You love,
Holding my beloved precious,
Loving her/him in this moment exactly as she/he is,
Praying that she/he follows her/his true path
Regardless of where it takes her/him.
Give me a heart gentle and willing to love her/him
As she/he would beloved, with honor and respect,
Kindness and humor,
Joy and friendship.
Give me a love so pure and vast,
So simple and strong,
That it cherishes the love and the loving,
Asking nothing in return.
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From Impressionism to Dada, from sculpture to photography, from Michelangelo to Chagall to Hokusai, the visual arts are amazing. Here’s another prayer celebrating creativity. It follows the same structure as other in this series, which is explained in the introduction to “For the Gift of Song.” To listen while you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
For the Gift of Art
G-d, we give thanks for the gift of art,
For pencil and paint,
For glass and fabric,
For metal and stone,
For the gift that sees wisdom and beauty hidden in Your works,
For the skill and love that creates and crafts
Releasing divine radiance for others to see.
Hear this prayer for those who fashion art to reveal the secret glories of Your creation.
Make their works Your vessel.
Let heaven pour its vision through them
So that they overflow with Your light
Drawing others to Your glory.
So that when we see their works,
Our souls turn back to You in appreciation.
Together, we offer our gratitude back to heaven,
And rejoice.
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What makes life amazing? Joy and sorrow, laughter and tears, darkness and light. And the choice to embrace life with a sense of awe and wonder no matter what. This piece appears in my new bookThis Grateful Heart: Psalms and Prayers for a New Day from CCAR Press. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The entire text follows.
An Amazing Life
This is an amazing life,
A gift of moments
Precious and dear,
Profound in joy.
Profound in sorrow.
This is an amazing life,
A gift of moments
Glorious and holy,
Rich in laughter,
Rich with tears.
This is an amazing life,
A gift beyond imagination,
Fantastic stories of solitude and adventure,
Tales of darkness and light,
Psalms of frailty and endurance,
Poetry written in time and motion,
In stillness and silence,
In shouts and whispers,
In mourning and wondrous celebration.
This is an amazing life,
A river of blessings,
A gift to cherish
In awe and wonder.
Blessed are the gifts of life.
Blessed is the Giver of life.
Blessed is this amazing life.
Being funny is a gift, a talent, a craft and hard work. Here’s another prayer for the artists who grace our lives, a prayer for the gift of laughter. It follows the same structure in my series of creativity prayers. And it was fun to write. It was fun to use words not typically found in prayers…like “guffaw” and “chuckle.” Even so, it turns out to be a serious prayer about laughter and humor. Don’t be fooled. This is, in truth, a prayer for healing. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
Addendum, Aug. 12, 2014: In Memoriam, Robin Williams, July 21, 1951 – August 11, 2014
For the Gift of Laughter
G-d, we give thanks for the gift of laughter
For chuckles and guffaws,
For giggles and grins,
For silliness, goofiness
And roll on the floor hysterics.
Hear this prayer for those whose
Wit and wisdom enliven and enlighten our lives.
Let heaven pour enthusiasm and inspiration through them,
So that our lives overflow with celebration.
So that when we laugh our souls turn back to You
In wholeness and thanksgiving.
Together, we offer our renewal back to heaven,
And rejoice.
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Right here, right now, at this very moment, blessings abound. This prayer is about seeing the blessings in our lives.
A Moment of Blessing
Every breath and every blink,
Every moment and every heartbeat:
Each one, a blessing.
This is a moment of blessing.
Blessings given. Blessings received.
Every trail and every vista,
Every journey and every homecoming:
Each one, an adventure.
This is a moment of adventure.
Adventures alone. Adventures together.
Every sunrise and every sunset,
Every crash of thunder and every roar of the sea:
Each one, a moment of majesty.
This is a moment of majesty.
Majesty from heaven. Majesty on earth.
Every birth and every death,
Every love and every loss:
Each one, a mystery.
This is a moment of mystery.
Mysteries hidden. Mysteries revealed.
Blessed are you, Adonai our G-d,
G-d of blessings, G-d of adventures,
G-d of majesty and G-d of mystery,
You fill our days with Your glory
And our lives with precious gifts.
Praised are You, Source of love.
How do we find joy in the face of crushing loss…or even the minor mishaps of daily living? Perhaps the secret is to ask G-d for help. Or, perhaps, in spite of our losses, we make the nearly impossible effort to set aside our troubles anyway, to listen for the beauty that surrounds us and then by attempting to be of service to others. To listen along as you read, click on the triangle in the bar below. The text follows.
For Joy
Listen with your eyes
And hear with your heart:
In every grief, there is blessing…
In every joy, there is hope…
In every love, thanksgiving…
In every thought, wisdom…
In every breath, renewal…
In every moment, a choice,
To stay bent in sorrow,
Or to lift ourselves in songs of praise
To G-d Most High.
To dance with Miriam.
To dream with Jacob.
To laugh with Sarah.
To greet angels with Abraham.
To argue with heaven on behalf of earth.
G-d of the seen and unseen,
Creator of light and darkness
Author of justice and mercy,
Give us the courage and strength to choose a life of service,
Guided by Your loving hand.
A life of song and dance,
Gentleness and peace,
Honor and grace,
Kindness and understanding.
Blessed are You, Adonai our G-d, You love joy and service.
.בָּרוּךְ אַתָּה ה’ אֱלֹקֵינוּ, אוֹהֵב שִׂמְחָה וְשָׂמֵחַ בְּתִקּוּן הָעוֹלָם Baruch atah Adonai Eloheinu, oheiv simchah v’samei’ach b’tikun ha’olam.
Postscript: Here’s a related prayer called “Let Joy.”
For usage guidelines and reprint permissions, see “Share the Prayer!” For notices of new prayers, please subscribe. You can also connect onFacebookandTwitter. Please consider making a contribution to support this site and my writing.
“Alden has become one of Reform Judaism’s master poet-liturgists…" - Religion News Service, Dec. 23, 2020
“Mesmerizing, spiritual, provocative, and thoughtful, Alden was everything you would want in a guest scholar and teacher.” – Rabbi Denise L. Eger, Congregation Kol Ami, Los Angeles, and Past President, CCAR
"Alden Solovy has become one of the most revered liturgists of the last decade…" - Jewish Post & Opinion, March 29, 2023
“Alden left everyone feeling inspired.” – Cantor Jeri Robins, Shabbat Chair, NewCAJE6
