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rosh hashanah 5782 My relationship with Judaism began in my late twenties. It’s a story for another day, and it’s complicated. Was Judaism a religion I chose or one imposed as a condition of my marriage? And when I chose to leave the marriage, was I equally being exiled from the religion? Excluded from the richness I found in the faith itself? The question turns in my mind: past, present, future. I am Jewish. I am not Jewish. I am Jew-ish these are days of awe I have come to believe while there may have been a cost to my conversion, it became the power of my transformation. My courage to confront, my crucible to change. It was the price I needed to pay to know that I only ever needed to be myself. This summer has been one of personal challenge ~ hard hits from places unexpected. And yet, it has become my resiliency. To get back in my car, to invite my fears closer, and to put them in perspective. Rather than entangle myself in the stories of my rearview mirror, to trust in the safety of the present moment. As with everything else, I may not have shown up as gracefully as I would have liked, but my messiness is equally a part of me, and so I do my best to treat myself with kindness. So should we all. these are days of awe Padraig O Tuama wrote of conversion, if it means anything, it means more than one thing. It’s a process, and a conversation. It is an embrace of the possibility of change and future. It is a difficult companion. It is a rewarding companion. It calls us again and again throughout a life. Rosh Hashanah begins in the blasting of the shofar ~ an awakening to our self. We celebrate the creation of the world, and it reverberates as a reminder that every day we can’t help but create something. so, what is it you wish to create? what will be your relationship to the world? what will be your conversion? At Rosh Hashanah we practice teshuvah ~ a call to repent, but all the more a call to return. We have the capacity to make mistakes. We have the capacity to make amends. We have the capacity to heal. I drove myself back to Monhegan. I am still here. Today I will walk to Pebble Beach, allowing the path through Catherdral Woods to become my Temple. To consider my journey, to take a stone and cast it into the sea. To practice tashlich. In service, in return, and in repentance to myself and to a world that weeps and bleeds. because the healing is in the return these are my days of awe As always thank you for reading ~ I would not be who I am without your support and encouragement. I hope you can join me for some upcoming events in Rochester and online ~ all the details below! xo this is my practice ~ to be just sew
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