We are quickly approaching the High Holy Day Season with the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur occurring in late September and early October. This year the High Holy Days are quickly followed by Sukkot and Simchat Torah. It is a busy time both Jewishly and secularly, as this period also coincides with the beginning of a new school year and all the events that going back to school entail. It is easy, with so many goings-on needing preparation, to not find the time to adequately plan for the Holy Days, or at least not the spiritual part of the Holy Days. Somehow, the meals always get cooked, but taking the time to reflect on the past year and on what we want to improve about our lives in the coming year is pushed aside for a moment when we have more time, however that moment often does not come.

The High Holy Days has the time for reflection and preparation built in as we begin this season with Selichot, a special service that occurs the Saturday night before Rosh Hashana. This year, Selichot, occurs on Saturday, September 20th. A brief service will begin at 8 pm, with a wine and cheese reception followed by a movie and discussion (see related article). Selichot, which means forgiveness, is meant as a preparatory time to get in the mood for the Holy Day Season which includes the entire ten days of repentance. This period, between Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur, is also designated as time to evaluate our lives and what matters the most.

Many of us lead hectic lives, and I am probably guiltier than most at trying to squeeze an awful lot of activity into each day. Yet, in the midst of this article, I find myself needing a break so I check my email. It is then that I received the news: a seventh grader at SolonMiddle Schoolcollapsed at soccer practice last evening and was unable to be revived. Moments such as this remind us to appreciate all that is good in our own lives and to remember how unpredictable life is. I am spending this week at my parents’ house, visiting my mom who is recuperating quite well from major heart surgery. I am trying to take the time to enjoy the interaction between my children and my parents, suddenly very cognizant of how special the relationship between grandparent and grandchild is and that this bond is a gift that my children, my parents, and I should not take for granted.

So as we begin this season of repentance, I ask you to reflect upon a phrase from our High Holy Day prayer that we often do not take the time to think deeply of its meaning. We ask numerous times for forgiveness during this season for the sins we committed with knowledge and for those we committed unintentionally. How often do we pause as we read these words to think about what is meant by the words "the sins that we committed unintentionally”? I recently read a story that was meant to illustrate these words. The story told of a woman who was taking a fairly long plane flight. She settles herself in her seat and soon after the plane takes off, she takes from her purse, a bag of her favorite cookies that she was looking forward to enjoying during the course of her flight. As she opens her book to begin reading, she realizes her seatmate has begun helping himself to her cookies. She glances over at him, but not sure what to do, begins munching on the cookies herself. The seatmate gives her a look and continues to help himself. The cookies were quickly finished by the two of them who never exchanged a word although the woman thought to herself how rude the man was to continue to help himself to her treat and to never even ask if she minds or even offers her thanks for allowing him to share. Instead the woman silently seethes over the chutzpah, the nerve of this man, and when the flight lands she quickly disembarks with an angry glance back to the man.

A few minutes later, as the women is retrieving her keys from her purse, she looks down to see her unopened package of cookies laying there in her purse and is mortified when she realizes that she must not have removed her package of cookies and had instead been helping herself to the man's cookies, which happened to be the same brand as hers. It was actually she who had helped herself to his food and had not only never asked or even said thank you, but also had sent him several dirty looks for helping himself to his own snack.

There are many actions that we do over the course of a year and as part of our daily lives that are hurtful to others and yet of which we are at the time completely oblivious. We are not always able to ask forgiveness of those we have harmed, and yet we should acknowledge these shortcomings to our self and try to be more careful so that we do not hurt others, even if it is completely unintentional. We should also not be so oblivious to the many blessings in our lives such as a hug from our child or a phone call from a parent and pause to appreciate these commonplace and yet wonderful moments in our lives. As we spend parts of these coming months, together in prayer, let us value these moments of reflection that are a part of this High Holy Day season. May each of you have a Shanah Tovah, a good year, and may each of you take the time to reflect on your lives, your shortcomings and the many blessings that each of us too often take for granted.

Warmly,

Rabbi Estelle