When I realized that the month of Elul begins this week, Joni Mitchell’s classic 1968 song, “The Circle Game,” came to mind:

“…And the seasons they go round and round,
And the painted ponies go up and down,
We’re captive on the carousel of time,
We can’t return, we can only look behind,
From where we came,
And go round and round and round,
In the circle game…”

Elul marks the beginning of our preparation for the High Holy Days and the Jewish New Year. Our tradition teaches that each year we are to enter the holidays thoughtfully and must consider their meaning. These words, and this notion, ring especially true this year, amidst all of the uncertainty surrounding us. The seasons do “…go round and round” – relentlessly. We cannot change the past, but we can live in the moment and we can contemplate the New Year and how we can make our own lives and the lives of those around us more meaningful. As the song reflects on the fleeting days of youth, it also speaks of a future with new dreams and hopes, “Though his dreams have lost some grandeur coming true, there’ll be new dreams, maybe better dreams and plenty…before the last revolving year is through.”

I came into last year filled with hopes and expectations for my new professional journey at Schechter Bergen and the excitement of being closer to many of our loved ones on the East Coast. Plans were made, many of which happened, like the amazing wedding of my daughter just weeks before the shut down. How blessed! And then, there were the unexpected twists and turns of this past year, some particularly heartbreaking for our community.

As I now prepare for the holidays, I know they will look and feel very different this year. Some things, however, we can count on – notably, the power of prayer. I find myself already thinking about one of the most profound prayers of the holiday – Unetaneh Tokef – This is a poem that powerfully reminds us of the annual day of judgement; a time when our Maker decides each of our fates for the coming year:

He who inscribes and seals,
Remembering all that is forgotten.
You open the book of remembrance…
And the seal of each person is there.

The great shofar is sounded,
A still small voice is heard…
And all creatures shall parade before You as a troop…
Decreeing the length of their days,
Inscribing their judgment.

On Rosh Hashanah it is inscribed,
And on Yom Kippur it is sealed.
How many shall pass away and how many shall be born,
Who shall live and who shall die…
Who shall perish by water and who by fire..

We may sometimes fool ourselves into believing that we have control over our lives and the length of our days. However, the deaths in our community this past year amidst the pandemic have harshly reminded us that – we do not. We may not know when the “…last revolving year is through,” but the end of Unetaneh Tokef brings hope –  stating the decree can be mitigated through prayer, tzedakah and t’shuvah (repentance). What does that mean?

We dream, hope, and plan for many good things to come – celebrations, trips, and in my case, the impending birth of a grandchild. Yet we know that at some point in the future year there could be more upheaval, illness and loss.

While prayer, tzedakah, and t’shuvah may not prevent sadness and strife, it can impact the quality of our time, the purpose of our time, and most of all, the quality of our character. Prayer teaches us to focus on the gift of life and the power and influence we have for good, love, gratitude, and joy.

So here is my prayer for all of us as we enter the High Holiday season. Let us begin this year with hope amidst the uncertainty. Let us enter together thinking about what we can do to  bring hope, joy, and optimism. As we begin 5781, let us strengthen our Kehillah for the sake of our children who need our guidance, reassurance, and stability, so that they can continue to learn, grow, and be children even in these days. Let us strengthen it for ourselves to bolster our own strength as we face what is to come this year. May there be new dreams and better dreams in the circle game of life and may they be framed in how you embrace prayer, tzedakah and t’shuvah.