Yom Kippur

Our first Yom Kippur in Israel...I had been looking forward to it for a long time. On Erev Yom Kippur I had a headache that knocked me out for a while, and I was "happy" that it was the day BEFORE the fast, assuming that I would be ok for the fast. WRONG...I woke up in the middle of the night of YK with a massive headache (not from fasting obviously) and tried to go back to sleep. Sadly, I found myself for the first time since I was a little kid at HOME for the morning and mid-afternoon. I slept most of the time but did manage to daven as much as I could. By Mincha time (2:50pm...how nice and early) I was doing somewhat better and decided to attempt to go to shul for the rest of the day. I did not feel my usual self, but stayed anyways. Between Mincha and Neila, I had the zechut to speak. I was very happy to have had the opportunity to say a few words at that point in the Tefilla, and it seems to have been well received. By Neilah, I was going in and out of the Shul in order to stay until the end. I am very glad I did, because at the end of the davening, not only did we sing "L'Shana Haba'a Birooshalayim" ("Next Year in Jerusalem") but we danced around the Shul as well...I found it VERY moving to be so elevated at the end of the Yom HaKadosh.
The tunes for the Tefilla were also very moving and I am very happy I was able to be in the Shul for as much as I was able to be.

And now it is time for the rest of the week in preparation for Sukkot. I am going to FINALLY experience my first one-day Chag. I will gladly report on that next week. In the meantime, I hope that YK was good for all of you and that you walk away having made at least one decision of one thing to change for this coming year. (Remember...that is not a "resolution." It is a DECISION, a conscious one at that, that you will make a change in your life to be a better "Eved Hashem" (servant of Hashem).