Steak on the grill, asparagus chilling, a cold white wine. Sitting on the deck enjoying a cool breeze and the late afternoon sun. Does life get any better than this?
One of the things I love about summer are the longer days. Watching the sky. The colors change from bright sky blue to deep purple to night. Spying the fireflies as they come out.
I’ve been thinking a lot about light. Some of it is because we are just passed the summer solstice. The longest Shabbat of the year. But I learned that we only get five additional seconds of light. Five seconds. What did you do with five seconds?
I watched the sky. There is an old folk song that we used to sing at Temple Emanuel of the Merrimack Valley.
Watch the stars: see how they rise
Watch the stars see how they rise
You know the stars run down
At the setting of the sun
Watch the star see how they rise
Judaism has a lot to say about light. We talk about “Light is sown for the righteous and joy for the upright in heart.” We talk about Jews being a “light to the nations.” We talk about light being the symbol of the Divine. “The Lord is my light and my salvation.” And we know this, we absolutely know this because it says so in a responsive reading in the old Union Prayer Book right there on page 7 as we kindle the Sabbath lights. stitching together various Biblical verses about light.
Light is the first thing that G-d created. G-d said, “Let there be light and there was light.” This light was a bright light. So bright that it shattered the vessel containing it. Gathering the shards back together is what we call tikkun o’lam, repairing the world.
But sitting on the deck, listening the birds, watching the clouds, I think about the names in Hebrew for sunrise and sunset. The phrases are so evocative. Sure, we have different names in English, too: dawn, sunrise, sunup, sunset, twilight, dusk.
Somehow the Hebrew is more detailed, more poetic.
‘Alot HaShachar, is the beginning of daytime. When that first glimmer of light, non-direct light appears in the eastern sky. Barely discernible, it is an immeasurable transition from night to day.
Amud HaShachar is the pillar of dawn, that ray of sun that stands erect.
Morning light is important. We are taught that we can say the morning Sh’ma when you can distinguish blue from white, or more finely blue from green.
Mi-shey-yakir = “from the instant that can be noticed” earliest time to put on tallit and tefillin.
Netz HaChamah = sunrise; the first ‘beam’ of solar light over the mathematical horizon. The altitude of our calendar location is 1 meter (3.33ft) above MSL. Obstacles such as hills, buildings etc. are not considered. That doesn’t seem very poetic until you look at the root of netz. It means sparks or blossoms. So this is that sparkling light that dazzles and dances on the water. It was first described to me as the kind of light firecrackers exhibit so it seems especially appropriate this week. The sun as fireworks or blossoms. Love it!
There are parallel expressions for evening. Shkiat Hachamah is sunset of the last beam of solar light over the horizon. Bein HaShmashot, that in-between transition time between Shkiat Hachamah and Tzeit Hakochavim, when the stars come out.
Watch the stars, see how they rise. Watch the moon, see how it glows. Watch the wind, see how it blows. Watch the light, call it divine. What more could you ask for a summer’s night?