The great Rabbi's meditation was interrupted by his grandson's sobbing.
"Why are you crying?” he asks.
"My friends and I had started to play hide and seek, so I was hiding. But then they just drifted away and no one came looking for me!"
We don't live in a world that shouts Holiness and morality. When one wakes up in the morning, one doesn’t instinctively shout "Wow! G-d constantly gives me life and has given me another day. I matter; I have a purpose in this world, and I need to use the gift of another day to live my destiny!"
Nope.
I say morning prayers which guide my mindset to see the world for its purpose and beauty.
In other words: I begin to seek G-d's presence in the world.
We start every day with a psycho-spiritual workout that we call prayer. An adventure of discovering G-d in our world. Like any good workout, we begin with a warm-up. We still the mind, disengaging from the 'outer world' and its distracting static.
Then, the liturgy guides me – through 'prayer therapy' - to feel an appreciation, a deep need, for Oneness (symmetry, purpose, wholeness) in my life. And I call out 'Shema Yisrael (Judaism's ancient proclamation of G-d as the Oneness of life)!' There is Oneness. We are One.
In my little world, I've found Him. And myself. So we – G-d and I - are both elated. Because I have sought, and G-d has been found.
In Jewish spirituality, we call the Shema the daily call of the Shofar, because the piercing blasts evoke and articulate our deep-seated need for meaning.
It’s a special time of year. As we approach Rosh Hashana, try to say the Shema and hear the Shofar every day. We need it.
And we don't want G-d to feel forgotten.