We did it! Our small but mighty kehilah made it through another round of High Holy Days of Awe.
Thank you to everyone who lent a hand in this year’s celebrations. From those who organized and participated in leading services to those who organized meals, those who rolled the Torah into place and those who constructed (and deconstructed) our sukkah, those who attended an event and added your voice to the chorus and those who sent financial contributions to sustain our refugee resettlement work. You all have helped elevate our mitzvot and enliven our celebrations.
The following are a few of my highlights. I’d love to hear yours! Please leave a comment here or send us an email at info@sukkatshalomcolumbus.org.
Our Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur services were rich and soul-stirring. With Joanie and Mike’s help, we hosted our second Reconstructionist Rabbinical College student as a guest leader. Elya Zissel Piazza seamlessly wove their own passions and experiences into the liturgy, offering us new perspectives and interpretations of traditions. I want to follow up with them about the old European custom of creating yahrzeit candle wicks out of twine used to circumnavigate cemeteries, amongst other things… First Unitarian Universalist Church of Columbus once again proved an inspiring setting – the natural light that floods into and retreats from that space helps us connect with the importance of time in our rituals.
It should be noted that this was the first year anyone could recall when it rained during our Tashlich gathering. This was a good reminder that there are things in this world beyond our control. We can, however, control our own behavior, including how we respond to surprise weather disturbances. While we might have taken the rain as a disappointment, we greeted it as a life-giving source for regeneration and spiritual cleansing; another means of washing away our past transgressions.
Between Rosh haShanah and Yom Kippur most people get enough “temple time” to last awhile. But we pressed on with a Havdalah Happy Hour & Yiddish Song Circle, Intergenerational Mahkelah, Torah Study, Avodat Lev in the Sukkah, and Simchat Torah with B Mitzvah Journey.
Torah Study isn’t something I attend on a regular basis. I’ve admitted before to feeling somewhat disconnected from our primary text. So I was surprised when I caught my eyes filling with tears as I sat in the First UU library with a handful of KSS members who meet monthly to share their questions and interpretations. Looking around the table I noticed everyone had a different chumash (book with the readings and notes from Rabbis). They took turns speaking, listening carefully to one another and responding. At a time when our country is so divided and folks are struggling to engage in civil discourse grounded in careful and critical readings, I couldn’t have been more proud to count this as part of our Jewish wisdom tradition.
The final memory I’ll share, to keep this relatively brief (I could share a lot more!), came during B Mitzvah Journey, a new program I’m piloting this year with kids in that season of their lives. We started our time together in the sukkah and then went inside to redirect our attention to Simchat Torah. We had a full slate of activities including a quick review of the choreography of a Torah service, reading the final lines of Deuteronomy and the start of Genesis, and learning a few notes of trope (the markings and melodies for reading Torah). As we were reaching what I thought was the end of our time together, P who is having her Bat Mitzvah in a few weeks asked if we could roll the Torah to her portion. This was no easy task as we had to roll from nearly the end of the scroll to very close to the beginning. We took turns, sang Torah, Torah as we went, and noted the breaks between books. While it wasn’t in my lesson plan, I have a feeling it was something the kids will remember for a long time. I know it made a profound impact on me.
May 5783 be a year which brings you into our midst to share our Sukkat Shalom, our Shelter of Peace.
Jodi Kushins
KSS Board Chair