“Grow! Grow!” The Chorus that sings “You can Grow”

A drash on Teshuvah for Erev Rosh HaShanah 5786/2025

Shana tova.

There is a midrash that says: “Every blade of grass has an angel bending over it saying, ‘Grow, grow’!” Every time we welcome Rosh HaShanah — a new year!- and initiate the ten days of teshuvah (turning, returning), I imagine that we are the blades of grass and there is a personal angel over each of us that tells us “Grow! Grow! You CAN grow!”

Whether it is an angel, or God, or our community of prayer and exploration or my inner neshamah or all of the above, I appreciate the feeling that I, and each of us, have a team cheering us on as we do the intense work of the holidays — heshbon hanefesh (soul accounting) and teshuvah (turning or returning).

This voice of encouragement is especially important to cultivate because as galvanized as I am/we may be to dig deep, to imagine my own potential and consider my part in making the world more kind and compassionate, I also tend to hear an inner voice that is well — not so encouraging.

A voice that says: “Grow? You can’t grow. You can’t change.” “Make a difference, ha! You cannot do enough turning to make a difference.”

And while I hate to admit it, this voice has its merits. As I get older, I am more and more aware of how easy it is to get stuck in my ways.

Don’t get me wrong- having a more fixed sense of one’s identity can be really positive — and, it can also lead to less experimentation, less tendency to leave our comfort zones. And, a part of leading a busy life, which many of us do here, is not having the time, space or energy to try new practices or experiment with new habits.

And perhaps most strikingly, when we have been coming to High Holidays for a period of time — 10, 20,50, 60 etc years- we sometimes notice some of the same themes come up in our teshuvah goals. We can grow frustrated that we have not grown in the ways we wished we had in the past year. How is it that I am coming back to Rosh HaShanah with the same “teshuvah to do list” as the year before?!

Why have I not changed more?! I have been working on cultivating patience for 30 years!!!??? (as one common example)

And, well, the world- oy, the world! Oy. We will have plenty more time over the holidays to speak and get inspired about doing our part — but it is no wonder that we look at the world and this moment and feel daunted by the impact of our individual or even collective teshuvah.

Ok, everything inner, more somber albeit undermining voice says, has some good points. And it is our nature to often listen to the more self-defeating voices that pop into our heads instead of the challenging, yet hopeful ones.

But, tonight I want to be very clear: the voice inside that speaks the words of Caleb and Joshua:

כִּֽי־יָכ֥וֹל נוּכַ֖ל לָֽהּ

“Though it be daunting, we can surely accomplish this” IS the voice and perspective Jewish tradition and theology.

So let’s tune in and turn the volume up.

Let’s start with one of the most radical ideas about change in our tradition: the very name of the Divine. If you recall: When God called Moses in the desert, at the burning bush, and Moses finally agreed to go to the people, Moses asked God:

What name should I address, to help the Israelite people listen and follow me? Moses didn’t know and the people had not been in touch with God for 400 years so a formal introduction was necessary. And God answers with three of the most hopeful words in the Torah: Ehyeh Asher Ehyeh: I will be what I will be. “Ehyeh” is the future tense for “being” — a name that connotes change and growth.

God has many names so this was not an accident. Rather, God was sending a message: “You slaves who work and toil: you too can be something you have never known yourself to be.” You can change and grow and be free. Also, if we are to imitate the Divine, and God is always “being” and “future tense,” that teaches us that none of us is static or fully formed.

The Torah is also filled with stories of very imperfect people who grow in positive ways.

Jacob goes from trickster and loner to patriarch of his family. He wrestles with an angel and becomes Yisrael, then finds the strength to confront his brother- an act that was filled with anxiety and fear. The fact that Jacob dies still with so many flaws intact doesn’t mean he hasn’t evolved- an important lesson for us in our relationships with others and with ourselves. Joseph goes from egotistical and selfish, attention seeking younger brother to a leader who saves countless lives. Moses goes from not being able to speak due to being heavy of tongue to being a person who barely stops talking! More importantly, he goes from being a shepherd whose primary impact was limited to his sheep to the leader who enabled the Israelite people to move from slaves to a people committed to the highest possible ideals. The model of freedom for us and so many others.

And there is something else — something not highlighted enough in my mind: According to Torah, age is just a number. Abraham was 75 when he was called “Lech L’cha’ to start a nation and become the father of our people. Moses was 80 years old at the burning bush — both later in life, even keeping in mind biblical life spans.

Probably most significant is the fact that Rabbi Akiva, regarded as the greatest Jewish scholar of the Talmudic era who shaped a Jewish culture of hope, optimism and who centered loving our neighbor as the most important commandment, was a ripe 40 years old when he started studying Torah. If that’s not an advertisement for “It’s not too late to start doing what you love and are passionate about” I don’t know what it is.

And then, there is the very idea of Teshuvah itself — returning to one’s core, turning our ways, and repenting from our past actions and finding a better path forward. Teshuvah is the radical idea that we are a work in progress, that we can, by doing the inner work, make real changes that impact ourselves, our loved ones and the world. In the words of Rabbi David Hartman z”l: “Teshuvah is grounded in the idea of an open future, in the belief that the possibilities for human change have not been exhausted and that the final chapters of our personal narratives have not been written.”

Hopefully, by now the volume of the inner voice that says “yes you can!” and the community that whispers to us “grow!” is much higher!

Now, to take this into the next few days,

I want to briefly offer you some very practical advice to help you keep the whispering constantly in your ear in the next 10 days:

Number 1:

Adopt a “Growth Mindset” — the notion that it’s not that you cannot do something, it’s that you have not yet to try it. There is no permanent “I am not good at x” when it’s not something you have devoted attention and care to achieving. In that spirit:Add the phrase “not yet” when thinking about where you are versus where you want to be. For example: “I am not courageous enough” becomes “I am not yet as courageous as I want to be.” Or “I can’t let go of anger and resentment.”

To “I can’t let go of anger and resentment YET.” It’s a small trick that can change everything, opening up possibilities that were not there.

Most importantly, this trick, which I learned from the Growth Mindset movement, can soften the voice of self-criticism and remind us that change is possible, sometimes it’s subtle and happens over years, other times we just make a new effort. Either way, we remember: we are not done yet.

Number 2:

Thinking of Growth/Teshuvah as a Practice and not a Goal. I learned this from Rabbi David Jaffe in middot/musar instruction (working on one’s character traits). He was speaking of the quality of patience — something many of us struggle with. He offered the advice: Instead of trying to be the perfect person you want to be — which usually leads to self-critique and negative self-talk, try seeing the moment in front of us as an opportunity to practice. For example: when standing in a long shopping line when you have a million places to do, instead of saying “Urgh! I am so impatient” — or instead of just acting out, what if we say: What would a patient person do now?”

Let’s practice that reframe. Pick something you are struggling with right now about yourself. Now, reframe the question from “why am I not x” to “what would x person do?” Or How can I practice “x” quality in the next 10, 20 minutes?

I invite everyone to take a deep breath, close your eyes. Let’s listen well. Listen to the angel, God, the chorus of this community that whispers “Grow! Grow!” You can grow.

Let the whisper grow as loud as a shofar calling us: It IS possible. We ARE capable. It won’t be perfect, and it may not be straightforward — but we can turn and return. And we are up for the task.

Shana Tova- to a fruitful and meaningful holiday and a better year!