#BlogElul 18: PRAY

This Shabbat we pray under a blue sky dotted with puffy clouds. It is difficult to get started, to gather together, to find the right space, but in due time we begin with morning blessings.  

Allowing and inviting our bodies to be vessels of prayer, we imitate the Fountain of Blessings, we extend ourselves reaching to find connection, we let everything fall away in a moment of mystery, we turn along the path of infinity taking in the beauty of our surroundings, and we open to the heavens before touching our fingers to the ground beneath our feet. 

And when our meditation in motion has come to its close, we find a new place closer to the water where we share two prayer books and move our way through psalms and liturgy, expressing our gratitude, wonder, and hope, aware of the constant change on the water's surface, the track of the sun in the sky, and the voices of children at play in their own form of prayer. 

#BlogElul for 18 Elul 5773, Tuscarora Lake, NY   

#BlogElul 17: AWAKEN

I awaken this morning determined to take a morning swim. 

I lower myself into the water one rung at a time, water and air temperature about the same, sun warming my shoulders. As always, I let myself get used to the water slowly, paying attention to the process and to the anticipation of the moment when I must take a plunge, finding that there is no possibility of keeping it all gradual. 

Once in the water, I set off in a steady breaststroke, giving one word of the morning blessings to each stroke: 

Baruch...Atah...Adonai...Eloheynu...Chey...HaOlamim...Hama'avir...Shenah...Me'eynay...Utnamah...Me'afapay...Blessed...are You...the Awakener...our God...Life...of all the Worlds...who removes...sleep...from my eyes...and slumber...from my eyelids.

And so on through the 15 blessings of the liturgy. 

I am particularly aware of how different "roka ha-aretz al hamayim" (who stretches forth the earth upon the waters) is in water rather than on land. And I am amused by "hamechin mitzadey gaver" (who makes firm a person's steps) as I kick my feet. 

Midway through I flip onto my back and continue with a backstroke -- one word per each arm's stroke -- while I watch prisms of light glitter in the water droplets I stir up, mesmerized by the ever-changing clouds overhead.

I am so blessed to awaken in this manner! 

#BlogElul for 17 Elul 5773  

#blogElul 3: BLESS

On most mornings, I find a time to recite morning blessings, fifteen brachot from the liturgy. I use the selection, order, and translation from the Reconstructionist prayerbook, Kol HaNeshamah. I don't remember how I went about memorizing them, but once I did, the blessings became portable. I take them on walks, drives, and swims. I accompany them with movement. I put them to all sorts of melodies. I recite them quickly or drawn out to savor every nuance. I play with alternate translations and understandings. This practice has been a mainstay in my life for seven years now, one that I grow into more deeply every day.

Today, I sang the blessings on a rainy walk in my neighborhood, stopping every now and then to enjoy the ripples from raindrops in the puddles.  What a blessing it is to be able to savor the beauty and blessings of each day.

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#BlogElul for 3 Elul 5773