L’Shana Tovah

A special holiday message from our Director of Jewish Life, Yanira Quiñones

 

As a child, I always loved this time of year. It was the time of year that the smell of new objects was in the air. There is something very comforting about how the air smelled crisp and refreshing. It was a sign of goodness to come. I was so fortunate to grow up in a home that often focused on the blessings that were in front of us and held onto knowing that there were blessings yet to come.

Growing up, my mother would often describe blessings like the weather.  Rainwater was always viewed as a blessing.  Perhaps it was because she’s the daughter of a coffee farmer. If the land got enough rain, rest assured that my family would have a good crop.  Water and blessings were intertwined and inseparable.

Each year brings its own ups and downs and twists and turns.  As we approach the Jewish New Year, Rosh Hashanah is my opportunity to pause and take an inventory of the blessings that each of us was granted this past year.  I always look for the quiet moments that intersect my busy world.  I am truly grateful for all the blessings that I have in my life.

I look forward to a cascade of blessings, just like the rain my grandfather saw as a blessing.

It is not surprising that one of our Rosh Hashanah traditions is Tashlich meaning “to cast away.” It’s traditional to go to a body of water, such as a lake or river, on the afternoon of the first day of Rosh Hashanah for a ceremony to symbolically cast away the things we did wrong in the past year so we can start fresh in the new year.

I wish everyone a L’Shana Tovah and many blessings in the coming year.