Shana Tovah U'Metukah

Tonight marks the second night of Rosh Hashanah and though I'm not Jewish, I like to celebrate this holiday because the meaning resonates with me. Rosh Hashanah is the beginning of the Jewish year, and to Jews, the birthday of mankind. The general idea is that one must accept God as King, and that God's desire to continue creating the world rests on this acceptance. I don't know about that part, but I love the themes of renewal, hope, giving thanks, abundance, and clean slates.

I explained a bit about the apples and honey tradition in this post here and for the past few years, I've taken time to sit down and dip apples into honey.

 

{blue pomegranates by ZehArtandJewelry}

This year, I'm going to add pomegranates and challah bread, as my local Jewish Center now sells fresh challah. Pomegranates are eaten as they symbolize the wish to have a year full of good deeds, just as pomegranates are filled wth juicy seeds. Challah bread is a centerpiece of any Jewish meal and symbolizes the food from heaven provided to the Jews after the exodus from Egypt.

 

Even if you're not Jewish (as I'm not), I hope you can appreciate the meaning behind this day - and shana tovah u'metukah

(wishing you a sweet and happy new year)!

Shana Tova!

{apples and honeycomb art print by Jewish Modern}

Tomorrow is the first night of Rosh Hashanah, the beginning of the Jewish Year. It was the artistry in this print that caught my eye, but the description that convinced me to share it.

"It's tradition on Rosh Hashanah to eat apples and honey for a sweet new year. But why specifically apples and honey? There are many sweet foods. Is there anything significant about them?

There is a difference between the sweetness of an apple and the sweetness of honey. An apple is a sweet fruit which grows on a tree. There is nothing surprising about that--many fruits are sweet. But honey comes from a bee--an insect that is not only inedible, it actually stings. Nevertheless the honey that it produces is sweet. In fact, honey is sweeter than an apple!

Similarly, there are two types of sweetness in our lives: we have times of family celebration, successes in our careers, personal triumphs and harmonious relationships. These are sweet times like the apple is sweet. But then there is a different type of sweetness; a sweetness that comes from times of challenge."


Be sure to check out more art at Jewish Modern and her sister site Kitchen Wizard. Come back tomorrow for a feature and a discount code from these fabulous shops!