Rabbi Jamie’s Corner
August 2025
We’re happy to share these thoughts on current events or Jewish themes from Rabbi Jamie Hyams (our Development Director). Feel free to reach out to Jamie directly at jamie@hflasf.org if you would like to talk about any of the ideas discussed here.
The month of Elul, which begins with the new moon on August 25, is traditionally a time for self-reflection and preparation as we move toward Rosh Hashanah and the High Holidays. In Jewish tradition, the very name Elul (א–ל–ו–ל) forms the acronym ani l’dodi v’dodi li, “I am for my beloved, and my beloved is mine,” from the Song of Songs. Some interpret this as symbolizing the love between God and the Jewish people. Others see it as a reminder of the importance of connection, comfort, and renewal in our relationships and communities. However we approach it, Elul invites us to pause, take stock, and reflect.
This season also coincides with what we call “student loan season” at Hebrew Free Loan. Each year, students come to us with their hopes, challenges, and dreams for the future. They talk about the year they’ve had and the year they’re about to begin. These students model the work of reflection and renewal Elul asks of us, looking back honestly and looking ahead with courage. With the support of our interest-free loans, they are able to take the next steps in their journeys, imagining and building the lives to which they aspire.
As for myself, I have a milestone birthday approaching this year, and I’ll admit I have mixed feelings about it. I am grateful for my health, and I know not everyone is blessed to reach this age, but it is still sobering to watch the years accumulate. Each summer, my family spends time in Hailey, Idaho, where my father and stepmother were part of the Wood River Jewish Community. They are no longer here, but many of their friends remain. Each year, we all grow a little grayer, but the continuity and warmth of community span the generations, reminding me that aging is not only about loss but also about belonging.
Jewish tradition offers tools to understand the passage of time. The Mishnah teaches: “At five, the study of Scripture; at ten, the study of Mishnah; at thirteen, subject to the commandments; at fifteen, the study of Talmud; at eighteen, the bridal canopy; at twenty, livelihood; at thirty, strength; at forty, wisdom; at fifty, counsel; at sixty, old age; at seventy, fullness of years; at eighty, strength; at ninety, bent body; at one hundred, as good as dead.”
When this was written, life expectancy was short. Today, with many living into their nineties, sixty hardly feels like “old age.” Instead, our added years give us more time for reflection, purpose, and joy.
When I look up at the night sky, I’m reminded of how the passage of time is grounded in the rhythms of the Jewish calendar. Each month begins with the new moon, grows into fullness, and wanes again. Just as the moon changes, so do our lives. Elul, in particular, is a wake-up call to reflect on the past year and consider what we want to be different in the year to come. During my years in Jerusalem, an elderly neighbor would blow the shofar each morning of Elul, stirring the whole neighborhood awake. Now, in San Ramon, I sound the shofar myself: a reminder to my neighbors and to me that it’s time to pay attention, wake up, and prepare for renewal.
I take comfort, during the season of Elul, in remembering that that our lives matter, we are capable of change, and we are not alone as we navigate transformation. There are many tools for reflection to help with this process: meditation, journaling, conversation, prayer, or simply quiet moments of honesty with ourselves. However you choose to approach it, I encourage you to embrace Elul as an invitation to see that change is within our reach. It is a reminder that reflection, renewal, and return are gifts, and we each have agency to shape the year ahead.
And when the path of renewal requires practical support, Hebrew Free Loan is here to help. Our interest-free loans make it possible for people to live lives of joy and dignity, to imagine futures for themselves and their families, and to take the steps needed to make those futures real. Whether someone is going back to school, starting a family, purchasing a home, or managing unexpected challenges, Hebrew Free Loan exists to open doors and empower dreams.
May this Elul be a time of comfort, growth, and awakening for all of us. May we embrace the closeness of community and the richness of reflection, and step into the year ahead with courage, clarity, and hope, ready to create the lives we imagine for ourselves.
~Rabbi Jamie
