Late Summer Intersections
- Leann Shamash
- 1 day ago
- 2 min read
#elul #august #latesummer #summerwaning #earliersunsets #latersunrises #tiredflowers #seferdevarim #parsha #kiteitzei #parshatkiteitzei #parshathashavua #intersections #intersectionsoftime #intersectionsofmeanings #deuteronomy #wordshavewings #parshapoetry
Asking forgiveness from Parshat Ki Teitzei for not writing about its many important mitzvot this week. Below you will find a few posts from the past on Parshat Ki Teitzei. Tiny Tales of Kindness (2025) is my favorite because it contains your stories of kindness and caring.
This time of the year is always a transition for me, and I suspect I am not alone. In our house we always have said that Augusts are like one long Sunday, anticipating a Monday school day. Although we don't have school age children anymore, I still feel that change of seasons, especially around mid- August. This is combined with the beginning of Chodesh Elul last week, so I have been considering the intersection of times; summertime, vacation time, Elul, August and the beginning of a time looking inward. What follows below is that jumble of times and the tiny bit of confusion they present.
As always, I welcome your thoughts.
Shabbat Shalom,
Leann
Late Summer Intersections
The time is here,
the long, slow good bye to summer
Farewell to the steady hum of cicada by day
and the orchestra of crickets by night
There is still time to wear that old tee shirt,
while sweaters gather moths in the back closet.
There is still time to sit on a rocker,
or a beach,
or a mountain cabin,
and marvel as the clouds blush pink at night
only to return with peach sunrises at 5 AM.
It is that time,
though its hard to say aloud,
the slow change of seasons is beginning.
Plants are getting tired,
their leaves paler,
burnt at the edges
while weeds on the side of the road grow craggy.
Fear not, things change slowly, slowly.
There’s still time to enjoy people strolling with iced coffee
and time to hear kids chatter at local cafes,
and watch young athletes prepare for September games.
There is still time time to think summery thoughts
as fall schedules are announced,
but see,
the days are noticeably shorter.
The signs are there,
falling into place one by one ,
and there is mingled sadness and excitement
as August days dwindle.
August is entwined with Elul.
Summer begins to fade as August wanes and self reflection of Elul begins.
Elul has begun.
Summer songs you hummed to yourself just yesterday change as Sephardic selichot melodies slip into your ears and take root until the holidays depart.
A certain gravitas places the slightest weight on your shoulders.
You feel, you know that something big is coming.
The clock keeps ticking as the August heart begins to look inward.
It is Elul.
Posts on Parshat Ki Teitzei on Words Have Wings
About the End of Summer
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