WHAT IS THE ESSENCE OF ROSH HASHANAH?
One of our worst mistakes is that we give up on ourselves. We accept our limitations as status quo and cease believing in our own potential for greatness. Over time, optimism becomes “realism,” and we settle into depression and depressed expectation. We give up on ever being really happy. We accept that we’ll never really communicate with our spouses and children. Parents tell their kids: “When you’re my age you’ll understand.” What they mean is: “When you’re my age you’ll have given up just as I have.” We stop trying to grow and start preparing to die. Rosh Hashanah is the opportunity to renew the dream of what life can be — to come home to our true path, to fulfill our potential. On Rosh Hashanah we make an accounting of our year and we pray repeatedly for life. How do we justify another year of life? What did we do with the last year? Has it been a time of growth, of insight and of caring for others? Did we make use of our time, or did we squander it? Has it truly been a year of li
