First Fruits
It’s Rosh HaShanah — New Year’s Day for Jews. Clean slate. New year. Endless possibilities except that you know that Rosh HaShanah is going to slide around again in 365 days, wiping the slate clean again, which makes you wonder why you’re racing through things — feeling frantic about life — if you’re going to keep getting sent back to the starting line.
The Wolvog came to this awful realization during the first week of school — that this was it. That every year, it would start anew, but it would all repeat in a different formation. That from now until 18, he’s in school. And then he’s in college. Then he’s maybe in grad school. And then he’s in a daily job. But every year, at least until he’s 18, he will keep up with the race only to find himself back at the starting line every September.
When you see time stretching on ahead of you like that and how much you still have to get through, it’s overwhelming. And when you look backwards at how quickly time actually passes, it is equally overwhelming.
Therefore, instead of living my life as if I am frantically counting pomegranate seeds, I am attempting to start this year by just enjoying the new fruit. In Judaism, we eat a fruit we haven’t eaten yet that season (usually the pomegranate) on the second day of Rosh Hashanah. The purpose is to welcome the season and the turning of the year; nod at the fact that things keep coming around again.
I’m using this holiday to remain in the moment. To pause from worrying about the future. To set aside trying to control the things that feel out-of-control since they’re obviously going to come back up again regardless or whether or not I believe that I put them to rest. I am going through this holiday without thinking about first fruits to come or first fruits past.
15 comments
L’shana Tova. You were one of the best things to come in my life last year. I wish you all the good things this year.
Lovely post. And happy new-beginnings to you and yours.
Happy New Year to you…sounds like a great plan.
L’shana Tova. Wishing you a wonderful new year!
L’shana Tova…I think we could could all benefit from that approach to life.
Thanks for reminding me what today was — now the empty cubicles in my office today make sense! Happy new year!
Sometimes I share the Wolvog’s dismay… perhaps I’ll adopt your new year’s resolution myself!
L’shana Tova.
Wishing you and your family a sweet year!
Shana tovah umetukah to the whole Ford family!
I have been thinking about this idea of starting over a lot, but my thoughts haven’t totally coalesced, yet. I may visit this on my bloggity-blog.
Tell the Wolvog that I figured out in high school that I was going to have to get up early for pretty much every day of the rest of my life, so I might as well learn to get up cheerfully. I was right too.
I would also like to wish you whatever those other people up there are saying in some language that I do not speak which I assume means Happy New Year.
I love spiraling around. You get higher and wiser (hopefully) and you get a chance to do it all better this time around. Kind of like reincarnation but without the dying part.
Pomegranate is such a meaningful fruit. L’shana Tova, my friend.
Happy New Year! Enjoy all your fruit – both real and metaphorical. And metaphorical in the broad sense, not just in the traditionally-metaphorical ways.
I once read an article about education and assessment that criticised the current system for making it seem like “square one” every year. When you always get a C for maths, it sort of feels like you’re not improving year after year, whereas in fact you need to stay on an upward learning curve to maintain a C from one grade to the next. It was suggested that the grading system be adjusted “somehow” to reflect this, so kids appreciate that they’re not starting back at the beginning all the time, but progressing steadily towards a goal. No concrete suggestions on exactly how to make them feel this, though, either from the article or myself. So, good luck with the Wolvog then. It’s traumatic when you suddenly realise how much work there is to do in life.
Bea
Shana tova. ♥
Happy New Year Mel to you and yours.
Happy New Year! Enjoy your fruits.
Happy New Year! I love reading and learning about the Jewish holidays and meanings through you – and now through the Wolvog! I learn a lot in your posts. Pause, enjoy your fruit, and smile at the moment and new slate in front of you. xo