Gate of Awareness

Source of Life, at this hour of memorial we recall with grief,all Your children who have perished through the crueltyof the oppressor, victims of hate. Their deaths have broughtdarkness to the human soul.They lie in nameless graves, in far-off forests, lonely fields,and among the rubble of destruction. And yet they shall notbe forgotten. We take them into our hearts and give them aplace besides the cherished memories of our own loved ones.They become ours.We pray to You, O Source of Mercy, that Your Torah maycome to glow with a renewed light in the human soul; that,remembering them, we may sanctify Your name in all theworld. Thus will their memory become an enduring blessingof compassion to all Your children.We remember those who have died in years past, and namewith sorrow our loved ones whom death has taken fromour midst this year . . . . Taking these dear ones into our heartswith all our beloved, we recall each with reverence.In the rising of the sun and in its going down,we remember them.In the blowing of the wind and in the chill of winter,we remember them.In the opening buds and in the rebirth of spring,we remember them.In the blueness of the sky and in the warmth of summer,we remember them.In the rustling of leaves and in the beauty of autumn,we remember them.In the beginning of the year and when it ends,we remember them.When we are weary and in need of strength,we remember them.When we are lost and sick at heart, we remember them.When we have joys we yearn to share, we remember them.So long as we live, they too shall live, for they are nowa part of us, as we remember them.38