Sukkot 5785

 

This Sukkot has been different than all my others so far. For starters, at the age of 60, this has been the first year in my life that I've had the privilege of holding a real, complete Pomegranate in my hands, opening it, and eating the seeds! Talk about living in the galut!

    I decorated my deck as usual with Palm branches and flowers - and, again for the first time, made a lulav with look-alikes from my garden. It's a bit flimsy, so it's sitting in the window sill and not actually being waved. Fortunately, the Shulkhan Aruch comforts me by saying that women are not obligated. I would love to be able to afford to buy one, but so far the cost has prevented me. Perhaps next year, if Messiah hasn't returned yet....

    I said to the LORD this year that if we are still here next year at Sukkot, I would REALLY like to try and build a very basic Sukkah. I have no one to help me, no tools, and very limited resources - but if HaShem sees fit to allow me to do this mitzvah next year, I'll jump in, boots and all!

    How else was Sukkot different this year?

Well, a few of us prayed the Festival Prayers one of the days - and I gave the Mincha prayers a bash yesterday on my own. With the group prayer, we had 3 different siddurim, but we managed just fine, I think. One of the ladies had a Sukkot Machzor, which helped. Praying from an ordinary siddur means turning to this page and that as there are changes. I trust HaShem saw our hearts and accepted our prayers offered in love.

    Me and the Mincha prayers were another story. Then came Havdallah. I looked at my Jewish calendar and saw that there was no candle indicated for this Havdallah. Then I looked at my siddur and saw that there was. So I lit the candle and held, but didn't bless, the spices. Hope I got that right. Before I could extinguish the candle in the wine, one of the 4 wicks collapsed and half the candle melted immediately! There was such a surge of flame that I took heed to the sense of danger and blew ferociously to extinguish the flames! Aaah, Penny.....

    Today is the Fourth Day of Sukkot and we've had quite a bit of rain already. I'm loving the cool weather and look forward to praying for sustained seasonal rain after Sukkot.

    We had beautiful Sukkot services at our online synagogue, a lot of which I missed due to being ill! But Baruch HaShem I am on the mend now and was able to attend the Shabbat Shacharit Service yesterday.

    This year has been less joyful than other Sukkot Festivals, probably due to me being sick for part of the time. I have cried a lot - which is healing, I know - but I have also reminded myself that in HaShem everything works out for the good. I remembered yesterday, again, that the Joy of the LORD is our strength. That's not to say that when we have joy in Him, it is our strength, but rather the Joy that He has is our strength and that we have to be close enough to Him to be able to be strengthened by the joy He Himself has!

    Am going to wash my face and brush my teeth now before we pray. Hag Sukkot Sameach to you and yours!