Parshat Ki Tavo mentions the word TODAY thirteen times. In a D'var Torah on the website ONLINE TORAH, which speaks about the repetition of the word Hayom/Today, Rav Avigdor Meyerowitz writes
Hayom! One of the words most recurring in this week's parsha is the word "hayom" – Today. Already in the third pasuk, when one brings their Bikurim to the Kohen, the Torah instructs them to say "I declare this day …, that I have come to the land etc."[1] The word appears again another 12 times until its last mention in the concluding paragraph of the parsha: " Yet until this day, the Lord has not given you a heart to know, eyes to see and ears to hear."
Rashi comments that the word today is repeated to emphasize that each new day brings Torah fresh to those who study.
In light of the upcoming holiday of Rosh Hashannah where we recite repeatedly that this is the day that God created the world, הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם. this poem celebrates today and
it celebrates optimism.
This poem is for all of us . If yesterday was a disappointment, there is always today, a new day, filled with potential.
TODAY- הַיּוֹם
Today,
not yesterday,
but today.
Now,
as this new day dawns.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם.
Today is the day that the psalms speak of;
of seeing in color, of majesty.
Just lift up your eyes!
Today you will seek and you will find.
Today you will sing out and you will be heard.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם
Today that you will run that marathon,
whether it be 20 steps or 26 miles.
Do not despair, for a new day dawns.
Do not fret, for the sun is rising.
Today you will rise up and laugh into the wind.
Today is the day that you will squeeze your life hard;
allowing its juices to overflow.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם
Today you are tall enough to touch the sky.
Today you are small enough to touch your heart.
Today you are as strong as a lion, as bold as a tiger.
Today,
not yesterday, but today.
Now, as this new day dawns.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם
Today you will learn.
Today you will listen.
Today you will breath.
Today you will savor.
Today dawns.
The horizon is pinking.
The birds are greeting the new day.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם
Today you will live
and live
and live some more,
for there is only one today.
Today,
not yesterday, but today.
Now, as this new day dawns.
Today is the day.
Today is your day.
And with this day comes potential.
There is always potential.
With each dawn the world begins again.
הַיּוֹם הֲרַת עוֹלָם
הַיּ֣וֹם הַזֶּ֗ה יְהֹוָ֨ה אֱלֹהֶ֜יךָ מְצַוְּךָ֧ לַעֲשׂ֛וֹת אֶת־הַחֻקִּ֥ים הָאֵ֖לֶּה וְאֶת־הַמִּשְׁפָּטִ֑ים וְשָׁמַרְתָּ֤ וְעָשִׂ֙יתָ֙ אוֹתָ֔ם בְּכׇל־לְבָבְךָ֖ וּבְכׇל־נַפְשֶֽׁךָ׃
Your God יהוה commands you this day to observe these laws and rules; observe them faithfully with all your heart and soul. Deuteronomy 26:16
(Translation from Sefaria)
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