Mishkan HaNefesh: Closing the Gates

Mishkan HaNefesh, Yom Kippur, p. 621

This poem captures the urgency of the final moments of Yom Kippur. We feel the sun begin to set and gates begin to close. Yet we still plead for closeness, for compassion. The personal work of this season is strenuous and we are exhausted. But our time has not yet run out, as we yearn for one more chance to right our wrongs, to commit to a life centered on justice and compassion.

Yearning

Just a moment -
a shaft of sunlight
in the fog,
a shift of mind and heart,
a breath of peace.
Just a moment -
that's all I ask:
to feel You there.
to know Your touch,
to see the truth
behind these words we speak.
At the end of this long day - 
one last chance to stand before You.
Exhausted as I am,
I still have hope.
Just a moment - 
let me pray.

Excerpts from Mishkan HaNefesh: Machzor for the Days of Awe © 2015 are under the copyright protection of the Central Conference of American Rabbis and used by permission of the CCAR. All rights reserved.