Monday, October 03, 2005

A TIME OF RENEWAL

As the sun sets this evening, it will mark the end of another year and the beginning of a new one. We Jewishy-Type People will mark the start of the year 5766, and as with any other kind of New Year, it is a chance to wipe the slate clean of all of the Accumulated Detritus and Crap from the last one.

All of the missed opportunities, all of the screwups, all of the regrets. All squeegeed away for a fresh start.

Of course, there’s a little more to it than that - isn’t there always? You can’t rely on The Big Guy to forgive you if you have committed a wrong against your fellow human. You have to ask forgiveness: once this is granted, then and only then can you call upon Higher Powers to clean up your mess.

Call it coincidence, or just the Arcane Workings of the Jewish Calendar, but this year, the Birthday of the World - Rosh Hashanah, the Jewish New Year - falls on my birthday. At least, the one I mark by the civil calendar. Another notch on my personal Life-Belt; another trip around the sun for all of us.

To all of our friends and family, may you be inscribed for a sweet and healthy year. While that wish is a traditional Jewish formula, it applies to everybody. Happy Birthday to We!

No comments: