24 September 2013
We’re in the middle of the Jewish festival of Succot when we
build a succah (a booth or hut) in our gardens that we eat (and sometimes even
sleep) in to remember the forty years of journeying of the children of
Israel in the desert following their Exodus from Egypt.
But the succah is not just a historical commemoration,
recreating the dwelling places of the Israelites. The story goes that
throughout those many years in the wilderness, the children of Israel were
protected by divine clouds of glory, shielding them from extremes of heat and
cold and warding off their enemies.
And so the succah is a way of connecting that idea to our
lives today – somehow being able to have faith in the face of insecurity (as R.
Jonathan Sacks puts it), living life to the full in an uncertain and dangerous
world.
It’s supposed to make us focus on the important things in
life – not the gizmos and gadgets that fill our houses but the family and
friends that fill our homes: we step out of our houses, reflect on how lucky we
really are and express joy and gratitude for the good things we have.
For me, Succot encapsulates everything about Little S and
her future – faith and fragility, wonder and worry, all rolled together.
We even sing the Hoshana prayer – a cry for a divine rescue
from the perils of real life – and I can’t help but add Little S in as we sing:
Hoshana Shoshana, protect her, save her.
And the strange thing is, at the moment she doesn’t even
know.
Chag Sameach
