Happy New Year!

Many of us are not used to hearing those words except at the beginning of January, but there are some cultures who celebrate the changing of our calendar years at different times. Some of these are the Chinese New Year which corresponds to the Lunar months; the Islamic New Year beginning on the first day of the first month in the Islamic calendar beginning in late Autumn; the Thai New Year is a springtime celebration; the Ethiopian New Year is a spring celebration which comes after the “big Rains”; and the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah through Yom Kippur in the fall. The December 31^st and January 1 New Year’s celebration is based on the Gregorian 12-month calendar.

Although each of these merriments may be celebrated in unique ways, they all represent a new beginning. Before January 1st in America many of us make a list of resolutions, things we want to do in the coming year to improve ourselves. Those of us who celebrate Rosh Hashanah ask for forgiveness from those we may have unintentionally hurt, forgive those who hurt us, and we promise to do better in the future; the ten days between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur are known as the ten days of repentance or the ten days of return. Some of us are lucky enough to be able to celebrate more than one new beginning every “year”, but how many of us truly realize how special an opportunity we are given.

There are several greetings we use for Rosh Hashana, my favorite two are Shanah Tovah Umetukah (wishing you a good and sweet new year) and L’Shanah Tovah Tikatevu (may you be inscribed in the book of life). Those who are lucky enough to be surrounded by family and friends often share feasts of good food and sweet delicacies to hopefully signify a good and sweet year. We say blessings over wine or grape juice thanking G-d for giving us the fruit of the vine, and we dip pieces of round challah (bread) and apples in honey thanking HIM for the fruit of the earth and sweetness. We use round uncut challahs instead of the usual twisted versions to symbolize the cycle of life. We listen to the sound of the Ram’s Horn (the Shofar), light candles and read from parts of the Torah as we are commanded to do by G-d. It is often believed that the Shofar arouses us to examine our deeds and renew our relationship with G-d.

 The time between the eve of Rosh Hashanah (Jewish holidays always begin the evening before at sunset) and the end of Yom Kippur allows us time to reflect on our deeds. No one, not even G-d, expects us to be perfect, but we are always expected to strive to do better. These ten days allows us the time to examine our deeds, to be repentant for our misdeeds, intended or not, and allows us to find the peace within us to forgive those who have dealt unfair blows in our lives. The “Book of Life” opens on Rosh Hashanah, this “book” contains pages for each of us and G-d examines what has been written by our “own hands” (our own deeds). G-d judges and decides, by the time the book is closed on Yom Kippur, “who will live and who will die”. Despite the gravity of the words in our prayers, this is really not a frightening time, rather it is a time in which we find peace and self-awareness. We promise to do better, it is not the promise that is weighed by G-d but the sincerity in which we mean it.

Whatever time you may use for self-reflection and whatever belief system you subscribe to, the time you have to truly look inside yourself, to make peace with others and to plan how you can live a happier and better life is a precious thing indeed.

May your new year be sweet with hope
and new possibilities.
Wherever you go...blessings. Wherever you look...beauty.
Wherever you are...peace. L'Shanah Tovah

Renewal ~ #MondayBlogs

We’re in the middle the Jewish holidays, last week was Rosh Hashanah (beginning of the Jewish New Year) and this coming week is Yom Kippur. Traditionally most people who observe the holiday take time off from work to pray and reflect on their actions, to ask forgiveness for slights don to others (intentionally or unintentionally) and to forgive those who might have slighted us.

I’ve been lucky (workwise) in recent months and have dealt with multiple deadlines; so my first reaction after sundown the second day of Rosh Hashanah as I hurried back to my desk (yes I work from home) was thinking that I LOST two days I could have worked! And then I caught myself… I hadn’t lost anything, I reflected on who I was and who I was trying to be. The self-reflection helped me to learn WHY I did the work I do, it helped me to understand what my priorities are.

In addition to the peacefulness I feel after making earnest attempts to forgive others that I had been angered or hurt by, I also have gained valuable time in my life that isn’t wasted by tears and resentment. My reflection has forced me to face my own failings and has given me the encouragement to be better, kinder, and more productive. The time I spent in prayer and thought also made realize all the people in my life and all the things I have that I am so very grateful for.

I can’t promise to always think before I act or speak, and I can’t be sure I will always react kinder and fairer when something or someone “rubs me wrong”, but I know it is important to try. If one ten-day period (the Days of Awe) were enough to guarantee improvement, we wouldn’t need this yearly ritual. The ten day period between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur is a time for self-reflection, repentance and renewal. The process of our atonement concludes with Yom Kippur which this year begins this Tuesday at sundown and goes through Wednesday at sundown.

There is irony in our New Year’s observance; Rosh Hashanah actually begins on the first day of the seventh month. There are three other New Year observances on the Jewish calendar but Rosh Hashanah is the most major and yet all that makes it most unique is the blowing of the shofar and preceding Yom Kippur so closely. The shofar, a ram’s horn, allows each listener to interpret the message they hear, a patterned series of blasts that seems to reach into our hearts and minds. This is a period of renewal, we figuratively wipe the slate clean.

I gave myself some extra time before resuming my work and when I did start again I felt less pressure and in a happier mood. And even though I was much closer to deadlines… I didn’t miss a single one.

It’s important to take a few steps back now and then, to take a look at ourselves, re-organize our priorities, be more accepting of others, and be thankful for what we have. It definitely makes for a nicer life.

click here to hear the Shofar