Monday, October 6, 2008

Rosh Hashanah

One of the customary main parts of Rosh Hashanah is dipping the apple in the honey so that we should have a Happy Sweet New Year. I was never able to bring myself to eat honey when it’s in clear sight, so I always just eat the apple, but then I miss out on saying the Yehi Ratzon.

My best new fruit to eat is the Sabra, it’s sweet and easy to eat. The Rimon tastes very good too, just there are so many pits to spit out that it can get annoying. I have never tasted dates. So I don’t really end up eating all the Simonim.

This Shabbos Shuva, I heard a Shabbos Shuva Drasha that was great. There were a lot of points made. But there were 2 main ones that caught my attention.

  1. A lot of people these days are doing Jewish actions only because everyone else is, and it’s their way of joining the club, they feel no real connection to what they are doing, they don’t know the reason behind these actions. This struck me as very true, we have to start learning why we are doing what we are doing, it shouldn’t just be because that’s what gets us membership into that community.

  2. The Jewish way of life is really beautiful. There are so many mitzvos of where we have to do Hiddur Mitzvos. We make beautiful succah decorations, we buy beautiful esrogim. The Bais Hamikdosh itself was made of gold and silver and beautiful curtains. All Yom Tovim involve such beautiful meals and singing. We have to remind ourselves of the beauty of Yiddishkeit. Besides for the Mitzvos which we have to do, we look at the mitzvos that make us love being a Jew.

Great article worth reading about Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur.

 

Rosh Hashanah Video

11 comments:

Leora said...

Oh! This is the new you? It's a very nice post. My understanding is the simanim are just minhag. I mean, if they were halacha, my father and husband would have been much more insistent on saying each one, instead of saying half of the many I made and then continuing with the meal.

And can't you just consider the apple sweet? Does it really need to drenched in honey?

I guess I'm as usual an odd bird, as I'm always seeking meaning. Blogging so all my visitors see helps; non-Jews have such interesting responses to our traditions! Very respectful, my readers have been.

Gmar tov.

SuperRaizy said...

Nice new blog, babysitter!

Jewish Side of Babysitter said...

Leora: yea, it is! and Thanx!

Yea, I don't think they are Halacha either, other wise I would probably have to eat them.

Well considering that I never really eat apples except for Rosh Hashonah then perhaps that is sweet enough, but I usually like sweet stuff and if I don't like apples then perhaps that means that it's not sweet.

That's great to seek meaning. Yea, I like seeing their view to our traditions. I've had interesting stories from what they had to say.
That's great that their respectful, I notice that when they comment on your photos they are very nice. Then also I notice some other bloggers that have non Jewish people commenting and it surprises me how understanding they are.

Thanx, you too have a Gmar Tov!

Super Raizy: Thanx!

the sabra said...

EAT PETE, NOT SABRAS!

Jewish Side of Babysitter said...

the sabra: that was hysterical, now that I know what you're referring too! That was honestly a good line!

the sabra said...

:)

So you see--I really do make sense. I just don't bother explaining all the time.

(Now I'm the toppest commenter)

Moshe said...

Bah, do you eat anything?!
Apples come in different flavors. Try real honey, not the crap that's usually in stores. We used organic buckwheat honey.
You don't need to spit out the pomegranate seeds, just chew them well.

Jewish Side of Babysitter said...

Moshe: I promise you I eat, just not new and interesting things, which these stuff are.

Actually the apples that I did like were ones that I had when I picked them from one of the farms. All the ones from the stores taste like they have chemicals on them.

I never knew there were different types of honey, I do like honey in the chullent which my mother does, and I like it with potatoes with paprika. In those cases I don't see the honey and it tastes good. But if the honey is in sight I don't think I would dare taste it, no matter what kinda honey it is.

lol, never thought of chewing the seeds, must give your teeth an exercise, but they don't taste especially well once the top part is off, so no real point to chew them.

Moshe said...

Go buy apples from farmer's market by supreme court.

What's wrong with the way honey looks?! Do you also don't eat jello?

You don't chew the seeds after the top part is off, you chew the whole thing.

Jewish Side of Babysitter said...

Moshe: Perhaps I'll check those apples out.

lol, nothing wrong with the way honey looks, it actually looks great, golden guey stuff.

I eat Jello! But not Jelly.

interesting, perhaps I'll try that next year, I didn't know they were edible. Do you also eat watermelon pits?

Moshe said...

Watermelon pits are harder.

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