I Pray That These Things Never End

Wednesday night marks the beginning of Israel's Holocaust Martyrs' and Heroes' Remembrance Day and I thought it appropriate to share a tefilla thought for this day of reflection.

My son came home today from first grade and shared that he had learned about Hannah Szenes and the words to her classic poem, "Eli, Eli" "My God, My God":

אלי, אלי, שלא יגמר לעולם החול והים רשרוש של המים ברק השמים תפילת האדם

My God, My God, I pray that these things never end, The sand and the sea, The rustle of the waters, Lightning of the Heavens, The prayer of Man.

What do you think it is about prayer that makes it so powerful and eternal, even in the face of the Shoah?  For me, looking at my son as we sang this poem, I was almost speechless to explain to him the context and power of Hannah Szenes's words.