Dor L'Dor

I originally wrote and have used this piece over the past two year for the dor
l’dor component of b’nai mitzvah ceremonies. As I began cleaning for Pesach, it
was brought home to me that involving our children in holiday preparations as
well as observances, including them in life cycle events as well as day to day
activities, telling stories of the past, building memories in the present and
sharing hopes for the future, these are really the most important moments for
passing the chain. 
  
DOR L’DOR
   by Rabbi Birdie Becker
 
Dor l’dor
Reach back to the generations of Abraham and Sarah
Of Moses and Tzipporah
Of the prophets and the judges, the sages and the interpreters.
They planted the seeds in the land,
That grew trunk and branch and root.
Law and command.
Teaching and fulfillment.
Reach for the chain.
Dor l’dor.
Reach out to the generations of family and friends,
Of elders and of peers,
Of teachers that guide you,
Of parents that channel you,
Of friends that escort you.
They nourish the veins and arteries that flow through your heart
and your head,
The reaching branches of you
Building direction with hope,
Life with learning,
Love with love with love.
Reach for the chain.
Dor l’dor.
Reach forward to the generations that are yet to come,
The ideas, the emotions, the deeds you have yet to do.
The studies to be argued,
The loves to be shared,
The limbs yet to form,
The children to be nourished with
Your compassion, your wisdom.
Reach forward for the chain.
Dor L’dor.

May your retelling of the Passover story this year be meaningful.