Cantor Jeff Klepper, Beth Emet The Free Synagogue, taught me the following: The month of Elul, the month of preparation for the Days of Awe (Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur) is also an anagram for the following praise from the Song of Songs: "Ani l'Dodi v'Dodi Li" - "I am my Beloved's and my Beloved is Mine." In Elul, we try to draw closer to God, as lovers draw closer to one another. In Elul we prepare for just such an important coming together with the Eternal.

Psalm Ninety-Five

12 Elul: Ani l'Dodi v'Dodi Li

Here at Elul's center, bright lovers' moon
Casts shadows on our clouds of doubt,
Filling the air with sighs of longing,
Sighs of regretting, sighs of grief.

We fill this half-dark with swarming thoughts,
Itching uncertainties that we must soothe
With a letting go, an arms-opening welcome
To Your presence in our days and nights.

You fill the sky with Your light,
Chasing away the dark terror of our souls
Even as we long for You in Elul's center,
Even as we seek You in our hearts' center.

Croon us melodies of confidence, Beloved One,
Tender melodies that pull us back to You;
Let us rest against Your strong love for us,
Finding the Source of our searching.

Glossary: Ani l'Dodi v'Dodi Li, Elul, Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur