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Aging with Dignity
AGING WITH DIGNITY
יַרָבֵא לָכְבּ קֶזֹחְו ץֶמֹאְו תוּאיִרְבוּ ַחֹכּ יֵבּ ןֵתְו לָכִּמ יִנֵליִצַּתְו יִבָכְּשִׁמ לַע יִתָנְשׁ בַרֱעֶיְו .יַדִּגְו אֹלֶּשׁ ,הָבוֹט הָביֵשׂ יִל הֶיְהִיְו תוֹעָר תוֹחוּר וּשְׁלָחֵי אֹלְו ,יֵלֻּסְרַק וּדֲעְמִי אֹלְו יַניֵע וּהָקִּי וּלְטַּבְּתִי אֹלְו .יִניֵיַּחְתוּ יִנֵמיִלֲחַתְו ,יַרָבֵא תוּכיִרֲא רַחאַ דַע ,יִחֶל סוּנָי אֹלְו ,יַתוֹנוֹזְמ שׁיִדָגּ תוֹלֲעַכּ ,הָקיִשְׁנ תַטִּמְבּ םִיַנְשׁוּ םיִמָי .םיִמָי עַבְשׂ וֹתִּעְבּ Master of all worlds, Eheye Asher Eheye, I Will Become as I Will Become, The Creative Force of Always Becoming, as I’m aging, don’t weaken my ability to engage with Torah and maintain my practice of doing mitzvot. May my mind always be settled so that I will be able to serve You fully.
May none of my children or grandchildren die in my lifetime, and may my offspring, for all generations, be a source of pride.
Please sustain my strength, health, courage, and the vitality in all the parts of my body. May my sleep be pleasant and nourishing; save me from all foul moods. May I age with dignity, without loss of sight, balance, and weakness of limbs. Heal me and enliven me with vitality. May my financial resources be sustained; may the juiciness and vibrancy of my life be maintained for many days and years, and may I come to the grave in ripe old age, without suffering.
הָעֵשָׁוִּאְו יִנֵעיִשׁוֹה ,אֵפָרֵאְו הוהי יִנֵאָפְר תַלִּפְתּ ַעֵמוֹשׁ הָתּאַ יִכּ ,הָתּאָ יִתָלִּהְת יִכּ .ןֵמאָ ,הָלִּפְתּ ַעֵמוֹשׁ ךוּרָבּ ,הֶפּ לָכּ Heal me, Adonai, and I will be healed. Save me, and I will be saved, for You are my praise. For You hear the prayer of all. Blessed are You who hears prayers. Amen.
— Rabbi Chaim Palagi, (1788–1858),
Izmir, Turkey6
6 Excerpt from his book Kol HaChaim. Rabbi Palagi (Palachi) was a chief rabbi in Turkey who wrote over eighty books and received letters from all over the world with questions about Jewish law.
