We asked readers: Which song got you through a rough patch in your life or ignited a fire to help you access your best self?

Sometimes a song can ignite an inner spark, fan a dream into flame, prod us to bring our hidden potential to reality. Sometimes a song can light up the darkness, offering hope when life feels bleak or overwhelming. We asked readers: Which song got you through a rough patch in your life or ignited a fire to help you access your best self?

“They knew it was a holy day but had no idea what to do”

OYFN PRIPETCHIK

Written and composed by M.M. Warshawsky (Yiddish classic)

ITwas 1992 and the Iron Curtain had fallen, bringing religious freedom to the Soviet people. Most of the Soviet Jews who had held on tightly to their religion had already left to rebuild their lives in Israel, while the Jews who remained in Russia had pretty much lost any remnant of their identities. As a Yeshiva University student, I was part of an initiative called Yeshiva and University Students for the Spiritual Revival of Soviet Jews (YUSSR), to help reconnect Soviet Jews to their heritage. We ran programs throughout the year in cities all across the former Soviet Union.

That Yom Kippur, I traveled to Novosibirsk, the largest city in Siberia, to help the Jews there connect to the holy day. I ran a program for Kol Nidrei on the night of Yom Kippur, then woke up on Yom Kippur morning to a dark sky and blizzard conditions. After trudging for two hours in the snow, I finally found the old shul that had been abandoned for so many years. When I walked in, I found ten aged men standing around listening as one of them read from an old worn-out machzor. There were ten elderly women huddled on the other side of the mechitzah, clutching their pocketbooks and standing in silence. They knew it was a holy day but had no idea what to do. As I approached them, they smiled at me and asked if I spoke Russian. I shook my head. “English?” I asked. “Nyet,” they replied. “Ivrit?” “Nyet,” again. “Yiddish?” they asked. I nodded and their faces lit up. Full disclosure — I do not actually speak much Yiddish. I do know part of one Yiddish song that my grandmother used to sing to me, though, and it came into my mind. I began to sing, “Oyfn Pripetchik,” a beautiful old song about children learning Torah. The womens’ eyes glowed with delight, and they all started swaying and singing with me. For the next three hours, in that little shul in Siberia, we sang “Oyfn Pripetchik” over and over and over again. The song lit up the darkness of that snowy Yom Kippur and offered hope in a little shul in Siberia.

—Shoshana Schechter,

New Hempstead, New York

“When my chassan heard this niggun, he didn’t even bother with the rest”

 YOSIS ALAYICH ELOKAYICH (classic)

Composed by Benztion Shenker

November 28, 1966 was our special day. Added to the excitement of our wedding was the anticipation of the special song that Bentzion Shenker had composed just for us.

My chassan, Yoily Weiss, was a good friend to Reb Benzion and helped him in business, and Yoily asked him to create a song for us. Reb Bentzion was happy to be able to give something back.

My chassan looked through Tehillim and siddur to find a pasuk that was appropriate for a wedding. Reb Bentzion called him two nights before the wedding to come over and select from six niggunim he’d created, and this one was the second niggun of the six. When Yoily heard it, he had a special feeling for it and didn’t even want to hear the others.

Until today, there isn’t a wedding or sheva brachos where that niggun isn’t played. We are married 56 happy years, baruch Hashem, and people often come over to us to remind us of “our song.” At every anniversary, our children proudly sing this song and at every mitzvah tantz, they have the musician play it. It still gives us an exhilarating feeling whenever we hear it.

—Yoily and Rechy Weiss

Beitar Illit / Florida

“We are here just long enough to write a single chapter in the Great Book”

A DORFSMAN

Lyrics by Yonason Schwartz (Album A Gitte Niggun — to the tune traditionally sung to Yedid Nefesh at Seudah Shlishis)

WE were all sitting shivah after the terrible murder of Menachem Stark. Every night, as the home emptied of all guests and visitors from around the world, the immediate family and close friends would gather around the kitchen and sing Reb Yonason Schwartz’s “A Dorfsman.” Somehow, the words “Mentchele, mentchele, di hust takke in di velt a cheilek uber vissen zolsti az es is nor oif tzeitveilig” would penetrate and allow us to believe that there is a Plan and that we are here just long enough to write a single chapter in the Great Book. That everything has a rhyme and reason. The One Above loves us and is there for us always and forever.

—L.G.

“I asked Hashem if He would somehow allow me to have a child, and I promised to give that child the knowledge of Him from the first day of its life”

NESHOMELE

Written and composed by Abie Rotenberg (Journeys II)

“Come with me, little neshomele...” As a teenager, this song introduced me to the journey the soul takes from Shamayim to the world and back again. NCSY had placed me in the Ezra Academy kiruv school straight from public school. Each Erev Shabbos, the entire school gathered with song sheets and music, singing songs that were forming ideas for our futures. Songs like “Conversations in the Womb” proved the existence of intangible esoteric spiritual truths in mashal form, songs like “Teardrop,” “Man from Vilna,” “Akiva,” and “Daddy Dear” formed ideals of spiritual heights that we could strive toward. But “Neshomele” stood out and shook me to my core — if only I would have grown up in a home where I was taught from birth that I had a soul!

When I heard “Neshomale,” I dared to dream something I had never allowed myself to dream before. I dreamed of raising a child in a home where it would be aware of all the spiritual truths I had to discover. There was only one problem. Having children was not in my future. A car accident when I was a child had taken the possibility away. This was a secret, only between Hashem and me. One Friday afternoon, in the school auditorium, while tears streamed down my face singing those words of the soul’s journey once again, a tefillah escaped my heart: For just one millisecond, I asked Hashem if He would somehow allow me to one day have a child, and I promised to give that child the knowledge of Him from the first day of its life.

Life moved on. Unexpectedly, over time, my body healed on its own in a way that modern medicine couldn’t make happen. As my labor progressed with my first baby, my husband surprised me with a tape recorder, one song playing on repeat. As my baby came into This World, the first words she heard were, “Come with me, little neshomele….”

—Danielle Sudwerts

Far Rockaway

“Did I really want to say goodbye to Abaye and Rava for good?”

 LULEI SORASCHA

Written and composed by Abie Rotenberg (Journeys III)

I felt as though I couldn’t continue. I had been in yeshivah for two years and felt like a complete failure. Everybody else seemed to be shteiging away, while I struggled to grasp basic pshat, let alone coming up with any impressive chiddushim. I was seriously reconsidering my future in yeshivah and looking for job vacancies that would be willing to hire a 17-year-old boy. When listening to music alone in my dorm room, Abie Rotenberg’s “Lulei Sorascha” came up in the middle of my otherwise non-kosher playlist. I almost broke down into tears as I listened to the words. What was I throwing away? Did I really want to say goodbye to Abaye and Rava for good? Did I want to sever my link in the chain of Torah learning? I listened several times over, each time with a stronger resolve to try again. I then returned to the beis medrash. To say that it was all perfect after that would be a lie. But from then on, this song gave me strength in my struggles. It’s now ten years on, I’m 27, and I’m still learning.

—A.K.

“This baby was the one I had been davening for all along”

EL HANAAR HAZEH HISPALALTI

Composed by Shlomo Yehuda Rechnitz (Shir)

After the blessing of several healthy children, my little son was born with a clubfoot. I had a very hard time accepting the reality that my “perfect” little family was no longer perfect. As I was navigating the maze of casting, bracing, and never-ending hospital visits, the following song came to mind. “El hanaar hazeh hispalati…” I prayed for this child. This baby was the one that I had been davening for all along, and he was the one that Hashem wanted for me. This became my mantra through the difficult ups and downs. I sing it to my son all the time, and it calms him. Recently, at my older son’s Chumash mesibah, I was trying unsuccessfully to feed my baby at the back of the room. Suddenly, the boys began singing this song, and he calmed and started to eat. I felt like Hashem was there, holding my hand.

—R.P.

“There are tons of people out there who just want to belong”

WE ALL BELONG

8TH Day (single). Written and composed by Esther Deutsch

One song that lit a fire in my life is 8th Day’s “We All Belong,” about how really, we are all puzzle pieces in Hashem’s amazing scheme. I was born with a rare condition called Arthrogryposis Multiplex Congenita, (AMC for short), which means that the joints in my hands and feet are stuck or have very little range of motion. My AMC affects me in many ways and makes me feel different from my friends. I need a lot of therapies, I have leg braces, and my hands look funny. This song says, “We all belong… let’s stand together you and I…” which is really how I feel. Thank you, 8th Day. There are tons of people out there who are different, but want you to see them as real people, and just want to belong.

—G.W.

“This advice has been a guiding light”

LICHTIG UN VAREM

Benny Friedman (single).

Composed by Hershy Weinberger

 “Mach lichtig un varem arum zich... [Spread light and warmth to the people around you, and the Eibeshter will create light and warmth for you].” What a brachah, and what sage advice from the Lubavitcher Rebbe! Like most people, I guess, I occasionally feel low and lonely. Since I came across this free single from Benny Friedman, this advice has been a guiding light. Whether it’s a phone call, a text, a compliment, a kugel or cake for Shabbos, or making the effort to join in someone else’s simchah, once we think in terms of how we can make things “lichtig un varem” for someone else, Hashem will send happiness, warmth and light to our own lives, and help us stay in a positive, healthy frame of mind.

—P.W.

Monsey

“Hashem sent that kumzitz to give me strength  — because the following night, my older brother passed away in a car accident”

TOV LEHODOS

Composed by Yo Aisenstark

(Shalheves – Precious Tears)

Over 20 years ago, I sat at a Melaveh Malkah my friends put together in celebration of my 23rd birthday. Though I was still single and wished otherwise, my older brother had just become engaged at the age of 26, and I floated on a cloud of happiness. I felt so grateful to Hashem for His kindness. I asked my friends if we could sing “Tov Lehodos,” and spoke about how we need to be grateful to Hashem through the difficult nights as well as the vibrant mornings, when it felt like everything was going our way. Hashem must have sent that inspiring kumzitz with my wonderfully supportive friends as a way to give me strength  — because the following night, my older brother, the chassan, passed away in a car accident. We experienced many difficult nights over the next weeks, but I often thought back to that Melaveh Malkah and the words of “Tov Lehodos” kept me going. Four months later, I once again floated on a cloud of happiness as I walked down to my own chuppah to “Tov Lehodos.”

—S.F.

“I begged Hashem to take away this horrible machalah that was sweeping through the world” 

 TEHEI HASHAAH HAZOS

Composed by Shlomo Kalish (Tehei Hashaah Hazos)

ON the first Erev Shabbos that our shul was forced to close its doors due to Covid, our youngest son came home from yeshivah feeling under the weather. We were quite frightened. There was an eerie quiet that Friday afternoon. No cars, no fathers bringing their children to shul, no hustle and bustle. As I prepared to bentsh licht, I felt the overwhelming need to connect to Hashem and beg him to take away this horrible machalah that was sweeping through the world. I needed a song of rachamim that would provide me with the intensity of Yom Kippur tefillos. I remembered “Tehei hasha hazos she’as rachamim,” and I played it again and again as tears streamed down my face. I opened my window and let it play out to my neighbors. And then I bentshed licht.

—Sarah Stern

Baltimore, Maryland

“I had to put my ear right up to the speakers to drown out all the yelling”

KAH RIBON OLAM

Composed by Ari Goldwag (L’Yishuascha Kivinu)

MY childhood was a horror, and Shabbos was the worst of it. On Shabbos my dad was home, which meant we had to spend time around him. It was not pleasant. He had a mental disorder that destroyed our lives. He would scream and yell and make us do ridiculous things. Actually, we weren’t allowed to do anything besides breathe. My mom wasn’t much better. As I would get ready for Shabbos in my room, with tears pouring down my face, begging Hashem to save us all from this Gehinnom, I would turn on this soft, soothing, uplifting song. I had to put my ear right up to the speakers to hear the song and drown out all the yelling. We weren’t really allowed to listen to music, so I couldn’t turn the volume up.

This song gave me some semblance of oneg Shabbos. It also gave me hope for the future, for when I would have a healthy home of my home, with no screaming and no ridiculous made-up rituals. Now, baruch Hashem, I’m happily married and I still listen to this song on Erev Shabbos, with lots of hakaras hatov to the singer who gave it to us.

—Y.G.

“Hashem knows how hard I’m trying”

 AKEIDA

Composed by Yossi Green in 1993, for the 50th anniversary of the Warsaw Ghetto (rerecorded by Yisroel Werdyger, Du Voint a Yid)

A friend sent me this old and beautiful song and it’s been a source of comfort ever since. I was going through a rough and lonely time one long winter. I would go into my car, tears rolling hot and fast down my cheeks, and would blast this down the highway. Now, many years later, I still hum it to myself when I feel overwhelmed. Hashem knows how hard I’m trying. He knows what I’m giving up on when I choose higher. He will repay me. He is looking down and is so proud of me: the daughter of Avraham, doing her own Akeidah.

—T.G.

Lakewood

“I wanted to daven. But I couldn’t. I couldn’t even bring myself to open my siddur”

BROKEN HEART

Written and composed by Chayala Neuhaus (Miracles III)

It was during my senior year in high school. I was falling spiritually, and it was happening fast. I had checked out of all Hebrew classes, seeking no connection to Hashem whatsoever. I was in a lot of pain at that time. Teachers tried reaching out, but I had locked my heart shut. Then, one day, I got a feeling that this was not where I wanted to be. For the first time in months, I wanted to daven. But I couldn’t. It wasn’t going. I couldn’t even bring myself to open my siddur, and that really hurt. Around that time Chayala Neuhaus’s “Broken Heart” on Miracles III was released. It spoke about exactly what I was going through, that all Hashem wants from me is to want and feel broken even though I can’t actually bring myself to daven. It spoke directly to my heart, and I still cry every time I hear it. Tefillah is still so difficult, and I keep on reminding myself that “all He wants from me is a broken heart.”

—Anonymous

“We were like sprouts, not yet ready to bloom”

THE TREE

Written and composed by Rav Michel Twerski

About 40 years ago, 25 families gathered in Mt. Horeb, Wisconsin for a spiritual retreat led by Rav Michel and Rebbetzin Feige Twerski. Several couples in the group had begun a journey of return to Yiddishkeit, but we were like sprouts, not yet ready to bloom. We were grappling with “making it” in American society while simultaneously struggling with finding meaning in our lives. The Rav, an accomplished composer, shared a new ballad, an expose of conflict, hope, and fulfilment.

CHORUS:

Oh! That I might climb / Its branches, sublime / And touch the sky;

Oh! To snatch from afar / My very own star / And tread on high.

To eat of its fruit / By its sweetness renewed / To embrace the horizon with awe;

Fulfilling and free / Eitz chayim hee / Lamachazikim bah.

The song was an important part of our community’s growth.

—Lisa Hiller

Milwaukee, Wisconsin

“Hashem should repay me for my sacrifice with the things that only He knows I’m missing”

EINI YODEA

Written and composed by Motty Ilowitz (Raayonos)

There’s nothing like a tough decision to turn your life upside down. I had recently gotten a new phone and couldn’t decide which filter to put on it. Driving one night by myself, I listened to Motty Ilowitz singing “Eini Yodea,” about how we have no clue about what our real needs are, and only Hashem knows what we really need. I got so moved by the concept, the gorgeous tune, and the vocals that I decided to go right then and there to TAG, to put on the best filter they have. I got back into my car and, with tears streaming down my face, I continued singing and davening that Hashem should repay me for my sacrifice with the things that only He knows I’m missing. The song touched a place in my heart that was so deep I didn’t even know it existed. Less than a year later, when my newborn son spent the first chunk of his life on acute life support, I remember feeling that the miracles I saw throughout his journey were Hashem’s answer to my request that memorable night.

—Rafi K.

“I couldn’t get it out of my head. Shabbos is the meat and potatoes of Yiddishkeit”

IT’S TIME TO SAY GOOD SHABBOS

Written and composed by Abie Rotenberg (Journeys I)

This song inspired me as I began my personal journey into the world of Orthodox Judaism. My life was changed when I studied at Neve Yerushalayim. When not learning, I could be found doing “chesed” at my friend’s home. There were lots of adorable children, fun, positive energy, and always music in the background. “This is what I want in my own home,” I thought. This was the 1980s, and Journeys I was often playing on the cassette player. I couldn’t get “It’s Time to Say Good Shabbos,” out of my head. Shabbos is the meat and potatoes of Yiddishkeit. To me, “It’s Time to Say Good Shabbos” is the most beautiful, soothing, and important lesson in every generation.

—Julie Hoch,

Har Nof, Jerusalem

“Hashem knows the truth. Hashem knows the things I heard growing up, Hashem knows the nightmares I keep having”

VE’AFILU B’HASTARA

Composed by Shaya Gross

Igrew up with an absent father and a mother who despised me, perhaps because I reminded her too much of my father. I’ll never know. I just know that my life was and is one long, dark tunnel of pain and self-loathing. When I dated, I would think, “You think someone can actually love you when your own mother can’t?” When I’d go for a job interview, I’d think, “You think they’re going to pick you out of all the candidates, stupid?” These and similar lines run through my brain all day, every day. One night, feeling in the dumps, I was lying in bed, listening to music with my earphones. I don’t know who put that song on my MP3, but suddenly Rebbe Nachman’s words filled the room, my heart, and my being. It seemed to have been designed just for me.

“Ve’afilu b’hastara shebetoch hastarah — Even in the hiddenness, Hashem is certainly there.” He’s there for me when nobody can understand how hard it is for me to get up and face another day. He’s there for me when my therapist rephrases “My mother hates me” to “Your perception is that your mother hates you.” When my siblings claim I’m overdramatizing. When I beat myself up for being unable to put the past behind me when survivors of bigger traumas are able to get past them with less fuss. But Hashem knows the truth. Hashem knows the things I heard growing up, Hashem knows the nightmares I keep having of my mother yelling at me, her eyes flashing fire, and me crying, “I don’t know what you want from me. I don’t know why you hate me. Please forgive me.”

Only Hashem knows. And He’s there for me. I’ve replayed that song countless times and I never get tired of it. Each time, it fuels me anew to keep on living.

Thank you, Shaya Gross, for being the shaliach to bring a little bit of light into my dark, dark world.

—Anonymous

“Even if I’m a little sad, it’s probably because I haven’t fully reached that point of truth”

EIN KOL ETZEV

Composed by Dovid Feller (Gateshead Boys Choir – Chaim Shel Toiva)

The words to this song were written by the Chazon Ish in a letter to his student. Their meaning is, “There is no sadness in the world to one who recognizes the eternal light of truth.” The rhythm of the song is a bit slow (as I like it), and for those who are not deeply immersed in the world of Jewish music, it can sound sad. But on the contrary, the more I listen to the depth of the song, it makes me happier and lets me understand that even if I’m a little sad, it’s probably because I haven’t fully reached that point of truth yet. The song was performed by the Gateshead Boys Choir on their third album, Chaim Shel Toiva, surprisingly produced by Suki and Ding.

—E. Marks

London

“My innocence pierced, I felt ashamed of having worn my heart on my sleeve”

PRAY

Composed By Yitzy Waldner, lyrics By Bella Levitan, Chanale Felig and Yossi Beren (Michoel Pruzansky – Pruz Control)

The day of my first rejection stands out in my mind. Returning from a two-hour date, I felt elated. Naturally optimistic, I have a tendency to miss less-than-positive cues. Or so I used to. Before my first rejection. When the phone call came, I answered confidently, certain that my own optimism would be matched. But it wasn’t. My innocence pierced, I felt ashamed of having worn my heart on my sleeve.  Then I heard the song I needed to hear: “Pray,” sung by Michoel Pruzansky. Praying didn’t come easy to me, but from that day on I prayed. The lyrics in my head were both prompting and encouraging.
Pray, the time is right, for you to / Pray, up on your feet… This burden’s not just yours alone…

Three years later, my prayers were answered tenfold, and although I will never forget the day of my first rejection, I have renamed it: the day I learned to pray.

—S.S.

“Being able to cry and really feel my pain or my happiness has always been a struggle”

TEARDROP

Written and composed by Abie Rotenberg (Journeys II)

I’ve always had a hard time expressing my emotions. I have them, of course, but being able to cry and really feel my pain or happiness has always been a struggle. Singing has been a key to open my heart. When feeling stuck or emotionless, certain songs help me express the feelings that I have inside. Abie Rotenberg’s “Teardrop” is about a poor, lonely Holocaust survivor who never cries, believing that Hashem’s love is hidden and there is no reason to cry. One Friday night, she is able to buy only one candle to light. As soon as she lights it, the wind blows it out. She can no longer tolerate the pain and starts crying. One of her teardrops lands on the wick and the candle ignites. She then cries and realizes that “G-d’s love is but hidden, in time we’ll know why, but the Heavens had told her it’s all right to cry.” Every time I hear this song it reminds me that emotions are healthy and genuine and help connect us to ourselves and to Hashem.

—A Reader,

Baltimore

“It gives me strength to keep a good thing going”

THIS IS MY HOME

Duvie Shapiro (single). Composed By Ari Goldwag, lyrics by Miriam Israeli

I’m a kollel wife in Ramat Eshkol (living right near Benny and Tzippora from Growth Curve). We don’t know how long we’ll be here, but when I listen to “This is My Home,” it makes me feel proud to live here in the best place on earth, and gives me strength to keep a good thing going.

—S.T.

“Amid tears of gratitude, we give thanks for the bond we share”

AD HEINAH (freilach)

Composed by Reb Yisrael Meir Shmerler

Music blares. The chassan and kallah sweep into the hall in clouds of confetti. Dancing erupts, and the crowd is lifted off its feet. Then the band plays “Ad heinah azarunu rachamecha velo azavunu chasadecha... ad heinah, ad heinah…” As if on cue, my father arrives in the center of the circle, eyes closed in heartfelt prayer. Children and grandchildren join, us women peeking through the mechitzah.

“Until now Your mercies have helped us, and Your kindness has not forsaken us; and You, Hashem, will never forsake us forever...” Led by our family patriarch in a heartfelt display of tefillah, dance, passion and love, several generations cling to each other. Amid tears of gratitude, we give collective thanks for the bond we share, and beg Hashem to continue showering us with His brachos.

—S. Beinish

Jerusalem

“I felt I was understood, believed in, that if I tried, I could prevail”

KEEP CLIMBING

Written and composed by Avraham Fried (Keep Climbing)

AS a survivor of an extremely abusive upbringing, there were many times that I wanted to give up. “Keep Climbing” became my lifeline, especially the words, “Remember that surrender is the road to nowhere,” and “Keep fighting, this is one fight you won’t regret.” I related to it so much. I felt I was understood, believed in, that if I tried, I could prevail. That’s what helped me pull through the agony of those years. If there’s one thing I can tell people going through the Gehinnom of abuse, it’s this message: While nobody can blame you for giving up, if you do pull through, this is one fight you won’t regret. I know, because I’ve been there. And I’m proud to call myself a survivor.

—B.V.

“I was broken and reeling from the sting of rejection”

KEEP CLIMBING

A shidduch that had seemed so promising had just fallen through. I was broken and reeling from the sting of rejection when I found myself listening to Avraham Fried’s “Keep Climbing.” The words hit me like a bolt of lightning. I played the song again, putting it on repeat, as tears sprang to my eyes. At that moment, I felt Hashem’s presence so closely, and I knew that somehow, I’d get through the pain.

—M.G.

“At the end of the song, I ran out of the concert hall, crying uncontrollably”

THE LITTLE BIRD IS CALLING

Composed by Leonid Shokhin, lyrics by Malka Steinberg Saks

Igrew up in the 1950s in Baltimore, MD, in a traditional but non-shomer Shabbos family. During my teens, I attended several NCSY conventions and seminars sponsored in conjunction with Yeshiva University. There was a lot of ruach at these events, which I loved. But while I enjoyed learning about Yiddishkeit, I was not committed to actually keeping mitzvos.

In the winter of 1967, at a YU Torah Leadership Seminar concert, Cantor Sherwood Goffin strummed his guitar and sang “The Little Bird,” about a wounded bird captured by the vultures who yearns to return to its nest. The bird is compared to Klal Yisrael who wishes to return to Yerushalayim. I remember this scene as if it happened yesterday. At the end of the song, I ran out of the concert hall, crying uncontrollably. I, too, wished to return to my nest, to my roots, to Torah, and to Yerushalayim. The song had ignited a spark in my neshamah. Fast forward over 55 years later, I am baruch Hashem a savta with children, grandchildren, and great-grandchildren who are keeping Torah and mitzvos. I credit “The Little Bird “ for lighting a fire in my life.

—Leah Schwartz.

Baltimore, Maryland

“Intrusive, panicky thoughts felt really threatening to my sense of normalcy”

ROLLIN’

Written and composed by 8th Day (Lucky)

I was flipping through some music files when I came across 8th Day’s song, “Rollin’.” I had just run into some mild postpartum depression, with intrusive, panicky thoughts that felt really threatening to my sense of normalcy. “Keep on moving rollin’ on, don’t stop for the ocean. Keep on moving, waters fade away... Vayomer veyisa’u, fohr, fohr, fohr...”  helped me keep going until, baruch Hashem, the waters of panic and anxiety receded.

—Anonymous

“I cry for my struggling child to find her way back”

LEOLAM YEHEI ADAM

Shmueli Ungar (Madraigos). Composed by Hershy Weinberger

A simple command and a piece of advice for life. I’m the mother of a large family with a struggling child, and I sing this song a lot. I cry for all my children to grow up fearing Hashem. I cry for my struggling child to find her way back and for all the struggling children out there to access that feeling of yearning to do what’s right.

—C.W.

“I was completely shattered and felt like it was all over for me”

ONE MORE MIRACLE

Written and composed by Chayala Neuhaus (Miracles 3)

The morning after my engagement was broken, I thought I would never hope again. I had davened so hard, waited so long, and got what I asked for, only to watch the whole thing unravel before my eyes. I was completely shattered and felt like it was all over for me. Soon after, Chayala Neuhaus’s Miracles 3 came out, and I bought the album. I started crying as I internalized the message of the song “One More Miracle” — “So I will keep on asking for one more miracle, and never stop believing the impossible can be, I will be here still holding on for one more miracle, ‘cuz You’re my father too and You can do the same for me.” It became my tefillah, my chizuk, my nechamah through my most difficult months.

—A.K.

“My doctor informed me that one of the twins I was expecting was no longer alive”

LETAV AVID

Eli Marcus (Yogati). Composed by Avrumi Berko, lyrics by Hershy Leichter

A few years ago, I was traveling out of town to a relative’s wedding. It was the day after a routine check-up at which my doctor informed me that one of the twins I was expecting was no longer alive. I sat in my car crying, wondering how I would have the strength to show up at the simchah and smile. Playing in my car was Eli Marcus’s song. He was singing, “Kol ma de’avid rachmana litav avid...” and in Yiddish, “Yiddelle, geb a kler, afilu es gait dir shver, tracht nur vus er tut, litav uvid” — everything Hashem does is for the best. This thought, these words, gave me the will and hope to go on, and this has become my go-to song during difficult times. (As a postscript, further testing revealed that this baby would have been born with many severe medical issues. Baruch Hashem my beautiful healthy baby was born a few months later.)

—K.M.
Lakewood

“Whenever I’d be driving with my baby, if he became cranky, I just played that song and he’d calm down immediately”

IT’S WHAT I BELIEVE

Written and composed by Abie Rotenberg (Journeys III)

This song has been bringing me joy and comfort since I purchased the Journeys III album back in the day. When I was expecting my youngest child in 1999, I wasn’t young anymore, and my youngest at the time was 11. I loved all of Journeys III, but when driving in particular, I would play this song over and over. On June 21 of that year, I was blessed with the birth of my only son, my ben zekunim. For many months, whenever I’d be driving with my baby, if he became cranky, I just needed to play that song and he’d calm down immediately. They say that a baby hears what is happening from within the womb. Just like me, my son must have been loving this song in the months before his birth to such a degree that it brought both of us joy and calm.

—Clarisse Schlesinger

Los Angeles

“It’s like a heavenly reassurance telling me that everything will be okay”

RIBON HA’OLOMIM YODAATI 

Avraham Fried (single). Composed by Rabbi Pinchas Brier

About six years ago my father was undergoing major brain surgery to remove a malignant tumour that had just been discovered. It was a very emotionally-charged time, with the enormity of what was at stake for my father combined with my brother’s bar mitzvah and the birth of my own baby just weeks before.

My father was in surgery for over ten hours. While I was saying Tehillim on that long day, my husband played a clip that struck me. It was the acapella clip of Simcha Leiner singing, “Ribon Haolomim,” and the words went straight through me, like a heavenly reassurance telling me that everything will be okay. HaKadosh Baruch Hu was handling this like He handles everything.

My father made a miraculous recovery — within a year, he was in remission. Chasdei Hashem he is with us. I am filled with a renewed fire when I hear the song. It reminds me Who is in charge.

—M.G.

London

“These women are here and present, and the haunting beauty creates the feeling that the Shechinah is right here with us”

SHMOR NA ALEINU
Composed by Henry Bretter, lyrics by Betzalel Aloni

A truly amazing event envelopes a Lakewood living room every Sunday morning, as a group of young girls and older women sing and harmonize with all their hearts, accompanied by a keyboard and guitar, bringing chizuk and simchah to a special young wife and mother of a large Torahdik family, who is not well. These women don’t use the pure, beautiful voices with which Hashem gifted them to go on stage and get acclaim, and they don’t use their Sundays to shop and run around. They’re here and present, and the haunting beauty and purity creates the feeling that the Shechinah is right here with us. Among the many songs, one that stands out in encompassing our feelings and prayers is the Hebrew pop classic, “Eloka, shmor na aleinu kemo yeladim, shmor na ve’al taazov… tein lanu koach od v’eod…”

Please join us by davening for Tzipora Chana bas Rochel Leah. May Hashem grant her a refuah sheleimah bimeheirah.

—Rochel Bloch

Lakewood, NJ

“Is it not every mother’s desire to be zocheh to bring up children that light up the world with their maasim tovim?”

VEZAKEINI

Composed by Baruch Levine (Vezakeini)

Thirteen years ago, I experienced the life-altering loss of my infant son. The end of my pregnancy had been long and complicated. I was hospitalized over Yom Kippur, Succos and Simchas Torah. My precious baby was born on Isru Chag Succos and immediately whisked to the NICU, were he remained until his petirah 18 days later on the 11th of Cheshvan, also Rochel Imeinu’s yahrtzeit.

The experience was crushing, and I felt lost and alone. Losing my much-anticipated newborn son left me searching for meaning. I always took for granted that a pregnancy brings a healthy baby, that my children will continue to grow and be healthy. The loss made me think more about life and its purpose, and what I truly should be hoping and striving for. The song “Vezakeini” resonated with me on a very deep level. Is it not every mother’s sincere desire to be zocheh to bring up children that are chachamim and nevonim, love Hashem, fear Hashem, are honest, holy, and cling to Hashem and light up the world with their maasim tovim? I am certain it is, but I’m not sure how much thought I put into those wishes before the loss shook my world. Baruch Hashem, our family celebrated the birth of our dear daughter Meira two years later, a true light for our darkened life. Her name is out of a desire and tefillah that she, and all of my children, not only bring light to our life but to be me’irim es ha’olam.

—Anonymous

“Every time I hear those words of chizuk, my heart swells, yet I feel a pit in my stomach”

A YID NEVER BREAKS

Benny Friedman (Whispers Of The Heart 2). Written and composed by Chayala Neuhaus

When my brother, Reb Yehuda Yosef Hakohen Kranczer, was niftar a little over a year ago, I made a video collage using the song, “A Yid Never Breaks.” Every time I hear those words of chizuk, my heart swells, yet I feel a pit in my stomach. The song encapsulates what I feel — sad, but trusting in Hashem more than ever.

“In a reality so uncertain and unknown … Life as we knew it — forever changed / And there’s no peace of mind to be found / Who can even make sense of tomorrow / When our dreams keep crashing to the ground… Though it seems like the answer’s worlds away, we’ve got enough — just enough to keep us going / Holding on to unbroken simple faith… And a Yid understands That Hashem has a plan / And that’s all it takes to make it through, His Tatte loves him /That’s what a Yid holds on to.”

—Rabbi Meir Kranczer,

Detroit, Michigan

“Even when a difficult situation seems overwhelming, Hashem is there for us”

A YID NEVER BREAKS

We heard this song the day after the tragedy in Meron. A family member had a very difficult issue he was grappling with, yet that stopped him from going to Meron and perhaps even saved him. When we heard the song the next day, it gave us enormous chizuk and reminded us that even when a difficult situation seems overwhelming, Hashem is always there for us.

—T.B.

“I was clutched by a fear of being left behind while everyone around me was moving on”

A YID NEVER BREAKS

Iwas in my mid-twenties, and was feeling my singlehood more strongly than ever before. It had been nearly two years since I had received any suggestions at all, and I had just found out that a close friend was expecting — again. My inner world was a jumble of emotions: joy, pain, loneliness, a fear of being left behind while everyone around me was moving on, building families while I remained waiting, waiting, waiting. I wanted to connect with Hashem, with myself, but somehow, I was stuck, locked in a sea of confusion, unable to reach more deeply. Almost instinctively, I turned to a song I heard recently that touched me. When “A Yid Never Breaks” began to play, I felt my heart thawing, the emotions and tears beginning to flow. “…A Yid understands that Hashem has a plan... His Tatte loves him, that what a Yid holds onto…” I held onto those words like a lifeline, and felt my inner strength returning. Hashem knows exactly what He is doing, I reminded myself. His love is stronger than I can ever imagine.

Just as I began to calm myself, the phone rang. On the line was a shadchan, calling with a very interesting suggestion. A boy whom i stood beside, a few months later, under our chuppah. Hashem does indeed have a plan, and I was lucky enough to see it this time. I am forever grateful to Chayala Neuhaus and Benny Friedman for giving me this message when I needed it most.

—P.T.

(Originally featured in Mishpacha, Issue 941)