Preparing to Welcome The Closing of the Book
Tonight brings with it the Kol Nidrei service which I wrote about in a previous post as well as Yom Kippur which will end tomorrow at sundown. The Days of Awe (the time between Rosh HaShanah and Yom Kippur) have been filled with reflection, as have my prayers at synagogue…it’s not that I’ve been unfocused…unfocused is the wrong word…during prayer…but I’ve been finding myself slipping into meditation rather than group prayer (though perhaps that’s the point). This morning at around 3am I sat up with a notebook and wrote out what I wanted to achieve this year, and then on a separate page wrote what I wanted this year to be filled with, both pages entail the guiding principles for my coming year:
5770:
Observing Shabbat
Every Friday through Motzi Shabbat (Saturday Night) devoted to prayer, relaxation and a cessation of work. Disconnecting from the outside world to reconnect to myself and refresh myself for the coming week.
A Year Filled With Honesty & Humility
Honest evaluations of the situation at hand, humility and kindness in dealing with everything (personal, work, students, strangers, etc.).
Health
- Personal responsibility
- Water, black coffee & 100% fresh squeezed juice only
- Daily workouts
- Regular sleep
- Daily meditation
- Daily Yoga
- Daily use of a neti pot
- Total abstinence from alcohol for one year (חופש)
Finances
- Constantly saving
Education
- Reading one new book a week (minimum)
- Studying nightly
- Studying Hebrew daily
- Studying the Torah daily
- Constant use of flashcards
- Hebrew
- Arabic
- ASL
- GREs
- Constantly learning, during work, play, and rest
House & Home
- Comfortable at all times
- Warm
- A house of learning and openness
- Mezzuzot for all of my doors
- Constant music
- Better organization
- A house that allows for better observance
Work
- Constant music
- More laughter
- Better organization
- Continue to raise the standards
Writing
- Daily blog posts (outside of Shabbat)
- Daily personal journal entries in Hebrew (outside of Shabbat)
- 50,000 words for NaNoWriMo
- Organize and track all writing projects
Communication
- Keeping up on emails as soon as they come in
- Constantly keeping address and contacts up to date
- Regular phone calls
Teaching
- Continue to grow student base
- Allow teaching and work to reach a better equilibrium
Spirituality
- Torah, Torah, Torah!
- Hiking
- Following the Breslovian precept of talking to God for one hour a day
Graduate School
- Organize list of schools that I’ll be applying to
- Send out query letters for letters of recommendation with SASEs
- Study for the GREs
The second page was what I want 5770 to be a year filled with: constant music, dance, Shabbat, growth, study, health, nature, constant reading, forgiveness, communication, laughter, God, Havdallah, exercise, the written word, tolerance, humility, creation, Hebrew, prayer, Yoga, running towards something, work, organization, acceptance, honesty, beauty & hiking.
5769 was an easy year for very, very few people (none of whom I know personally)…so it’s suitable that we work to make 5770 a year of refuge and growth.
I developed a chest infection in Buffalo so I have to take it easy right now (especially lacking health care in the United States – I only have coverage in Israel) which means I most likely will not be venturing into the city again since I have an eleven hour flight coming up in a few days, and then I have to jump right back into work almost immediately after I land. More updates on that will come later (as will my next travelogue encompassing the past few months and my visit home to Long Island & Buffalo). Right now I have to get organized a bit, do some light cleaning, shower and get ready for tonight’s services.
May you all be written in the Book of Life for a good, sweet year filled with nothing but wonders and love.