Rosh Hashanah

For my non-Jewish friends. As you may (or may not) know, next week is Rosh Hashanah - the Jewish New Year. It applies to everyone, no matter what religion. I send it to all of you with the hope that all the good wishes in it come true for you.

May you be blessed with good neighbors who are there for you when you need them, and who are not around too much when you don't need them.


May the clothing styles of yesterday come back so you can wear all that stuff that you don't have the heart to throw away.


May those old fashioned expressions "thank you", "pardon me", "after you", and "you look lovely", come back into use. And may the expressions "you know", and "like", and "whatever" be retired forever.


May we sing songs that are singable, that have lyrics that are
understandable.


May your hair, your teeth, and your stocks not fall. And may your blood pressure, your cholesterol and your mortgage interest rate not rise.


May the world enjoy a year that is free of hurricanes, earthquakes, fires, drought, and political speeches, which produce the most wind of all.


May you have a spouse, or a child or a friend, or a grandchild, who loves you, even though they really know you.


May you learn that giving love away freely without strings is the surest way of receiving it in return.


May your insurance pay whatever your doctor charges, without insisting on any further investigation, and may the IRS also accept whatever you pay, without insisting on any further investigation.


May you receive a good report, from your dentist, from your ophthalmologist, from your dermatologist, from your cardiologist, from your gastro-enterologist, from your podiatrist, and ultimately, from your G-d.


May there be peace this year between the Jews of Israel and the Arabs, and may there also be peace between all the Jews of Israel, which sometimes seems almost as difficult to achieve.


May your bank statement and your budget both balance, and may they both include generous amounts for charity.


May you have enough to give you contentment, and may you have enough left over, so that you can be generous.


May we keep rage off of the freeways, and out of the workplace, and out of our homes, and direct it instead at racism, at poverty and at all the evils that we politically tolerate.


May we learn in this new year that what really counts the most is not the years but the days, not the machines we have in our lives, but the people we have in our lives, not how much we can accumulate but how much we can share, and with whom.


And may we have peace in the world for all to enjoy.


And may G-d continue to always be with you and may you always know it!


L' Shana tova! Best wishes for a happy, healthy, sweet New Year.