My People's Story

[bnewman]

The Jewish story begins in the mythic past in Genesis and Exodus, but it doesn't end there — it has grown over millennia through layers of history and tradition, interpretation and elaboration, and is still growing today.

listen to this song

/ A G - (-) / A A2 - - / 1st / E4 - E - /

 

Ages ago

It began with a story

The tale of my people

It's one you might know

 

My people believe

This story is holy

Teaching each generation

The way we should go

 

/ A G A A2 / A - G E / 1st / D E A - /

 

Tell the old tale, our ancestors' story

And walk with them, hand in hand

As they march to freedom, and follow G-d's glory

Into a storied land

 

And the story goes on

And myth becomes history

Our ancestors flourished

In a land of their own

 

Growing in strength

And growing in wisdom

No wonder their stories

Also have grown

 

Tell the old tale, and write a new chapter

Hear how my people sings

Through each generation the tears and the laughter

The songs of our storied kings

 

But kingdoms will fall

And peoples be scattered

So history drove us

To lands far away

 

But we never gave up

We spun new worlds of meaning

From our ancestors' stories

To chart a new way

 

Tell the old tale, the truth never-failing

The story that's kept us free

In each generation, my people are sailing

Over a storied sea

 

Now ages have passed

And we are still dancing

Into the future

By the light of those words

 

Gathering 'round

Our ancestors' stories

To tell stories our ancestors

Never had heard

 

We're telling new tales, expanding, revising

That's how we've learned to fly

In each generation, my people are rising

Into a storied sky

 

So tell the old tale, and write your own chapter

Embrace her and make her new

In each generation, retell her, adapt her

That's how we've kept her true