Parsha Poem: Nitzavim-Vayelech / נִצָּבִים-וַיֵּלֶךְ

Devarim/Deuteronomy 29:9-31:30

This was the last day of Moshe’s whole life

He’d grown up, he’d left home, he’d taken a wife.

And now he was old; it was time for goodbye,

But instead he was teaching; too busy to cry.

We learn two parshiyot (that’s parshas) this week

Which means lots of lessons we all have to seek.

Nitzavim means standing: we stood and we heard,

But Vayelech means going; it’s kind of absurd.

We’re standing, he’s going – how could we survive,

Without our great teacher who helped us to thrive?

But we don’t need him now, in fact, that’s the point

That’s why a new leader Hashem could anoint.

The Torah was not meant for just holy folks;

It’s written for us, who live lives and tell jokes.

Sure, Moshe was really a very great man,

But Hashem said, “Don’t worry, there’s someone who can

Take over now and he’ll lead them all well,

As they cross the Yarden and move into Israel.”

But before Moshe finished, he had to act fast,

And teach us to be sure that the Torah would last.

Hakheil, a mitzvah to gather and hear it

So we’d keep it and love it and always be near it.

But it’s not enough to just listen alone,

Every Jew must make sure that the Torah’s their own.

Its very last mitzvah commands us to write

A Torah of our very own, day and night.

If we can’t do the job, if we’re not qualified,

A Sofer, a scribe, we will need on our side.

To write a whole Torah is no easy task –

It takes years and costs money (better you shouldn’t ask!).

But if we all gather a dollar or two,

We can participate in the mitzvah; it’s true.

We also “write Torahs” when we buy Jewish books,

To read them and learn them, not just for their looks.

The Torah is not in Shamayim, they say…

The Torah is for every Jew, every day!