Farewell Tour

Newsletter July 10, 2023 Together, we're #keepingitsacred...

Last night, Elton John played his final concert of his Farewell Tour. Before ending, it is reported that he expressed gratitude for the experience of pure joy making music for people over the years. He dedicated his hit, “Don’t let the sun go down on me” to his band and crew. Chris Martin, of the band Coldplay, was there and took a moment to thank Elton John on behalf of all of the artists he inspired. 

One might have thought that the musician who brought to life Rocketman, Don’t Go Breaking my Heart, and Benny and the Jets, someone so dynamic, playful and vibrant, would have just gone on playing music forever. But of course the sad reality is that all good things end eventually. 

And so the question becomes how do we say goodbye? How do we honor what was before it ends?

Jewish tradition has some wisdom to teach here- lessons learned in the Vidui Prayer- the prayer to be recited the day before death. But I find the lessons it teaches to be a useful universal guide for all goodbyes. 

You see, the text is structured first with words that illicit much gratitude and thanks. It opens “Modeh/Modah ani lefanecha” I gratefully acknowledge- words from the prayer in the amidah thanking God for all the beauty and support received. It continues to affirm that life is precious- that the way life is structured is that we are not in control. And that is by design. 

Next, the Vidui asks for an atonement- this serves to release any regrets or shoulda/coulda/wouldas, and returns us to gratitude to the life or experience we have had. The time of endings is a time when hearts purify and strictures (like grudges, embarrassment, feelings of shame) are released. This cleanses a person of distractions from the final acknowledgement at the end of the prayer. 

The last section binds the person with the Eternal Oneness of God. Even at a time of endings, a severing of relationship, there is still recognition that we are all bound up in the bonds of the Great Unity. Connection to that Oneness, be it connection to the experience that was once shared or connection to the Source of All, that connection continues and yes, it transcends even the limits of life and death. Even as we are separated or set aside, we are always connected to the experience we had and those we had it with. 

It is such a gift to be recipients of this thoughtful and wise tradition to guide us in our hardest moments like this- when ending a tour or friendship, or yes, even at the end of our life. To have the tools to know that we should give thanks, release ourselves from remorse, and acknowledge that we are Eternally connected. 

This is how our tradition guides us on a path to say Goodbye to the Yellow Brick Road.  

Together, we're #keepingitsacred...

 Rabbi Heather Miller

Founder, Keeping It Sacred

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