A Word from Rabbi Schulman - 10/20/17

At Temple Beth Torah we have established a meaningful custom of inviting people to express their hopes for the New Year. Prior to Rosh Hashanah, adults and children had the opportunity to inscribe a personal prayer on an index card. No names were attached to the cards, though I did make a notation on those written by youngsters. All the cards were then placed in the ark.

Now that the Days of Awe have passed, I have removed the cards. Here, unedited, are the expressions of some of our youngest congregants:

I hope for joy.

I hope to work on my stress and anxiety.

I hope for a good year where there are no natural disasters. I also hope for my family to live the best year of our lives.

I hope that since I have not had a great start at school when it comes to friends that people will be nicer to me.

I hope for a speedy recovery of all affected by the hurricanes and that their harshly interrupted lives will soon be repaired.

I hope in the New Year to strengthen the relationships that matter.

I hope we get a new house that we made an offer on.

I hope for joy.

I hope for Rosh Hashanah for more hot chocolate in the world. Also for the orphans etc.

May the hopes of our children and the prayers of our adults be fulfilled. Amen!