We always look forward to the deep, soulful practice we create each Elul to accompany this time of teshuvah. We have a practice that helps us connect to the powerful transformational potential of this month, supporting our commitment to live more in alignment with our soul’s yearning as we prepare for the coming new year.

Whether we are on the shores of Lake Michigan or back home in Ann Arbor, after a brief davvening, we meditate with our feet rooted on the earth, visit our guides and Atik Yomin [the Ancient of Days] and ask for guidance and blessings for the coming day.  Then we chant slowly “The 13 Attributes of God,” before reading a version of Psalm 27.

It is when Oran brings his beautiful shofar to his lips that we most feel the presence of Hashem wash over us.  It is the shofar that is truly the wake-up call to the soul, calling us to a new relationship with ourselves and the One, reminding us of our responsibility to take a stand on those principles we perceive as holy.