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10 Tishrei/ 28 September 2009
Sep. 28th, 2009 10:48 pmToday was Yom Kippur, the Day of Atonement. It is considered the holiest day in a Jewish Year where the gates of heaven are open and we can gain forgiveness for everything in the past year. I always liked the fact that the prayers this day are done in plural tense. Everyone is praying not for themselves but for the whole community. There are five things one must do for Yom Kippur: no eating, no drinking, no washing, no sex and no leather shoes. Praying and going to temple is not as important as following these five things. Fasting is not really that hard, although one does get hungry. It is the not drinking part and resulting dehydration that gets to you. I get a headache and lose the ability to concentrate.
Just like many other things in Judaism I did not know about Yom Kippur until I came to America. And even then I did not care that much. Papa started fasting after a year or two after we got here, but it took me longer to pay attention. In fact, my first date, when I was fifteen, was on Yom Kippur. We went out for pizza. The day was convenient because all schools were closed. New York City has too many Jewish teachers and students to really be open on major Jewish holidays. I first attempted to fast in my senior year of high school when I was seventeen. I lasted until two in the afternoon, I think. (The fast is from sundown to sundown –twenty-five hours.) My first full fast was the following year, when I was eighteen and it was my freshman year of college. Because it was a university campus with one-third Jewish population, we had a day off, and there was an opportunity to go to services. That was the first time I went to evening Kol Nidre services. (And I think it was the first service I ever went to.) I never go on the actual day but I do like the evening services, it makes it all more solemn, kicks off the fast and I enjoy the melody of the prayers. Since then I have tried to observe the holiday every year. It is one of the few things I observe, like lighting Hanukah candles and keeping Passover. And all this is not really about God (I’m an atheist most of the time and agnostic occasionally), it is more about feeling connected with my heritage. Living on campus or close to campus whether as undergrad or in grad school always gave me an opportunity to go to evening services. I especially liked the Chabad House ones in grad school. But since I moved back home I haven’t really gone to an evening service. I went to a local synagogue two years ago but I didn’t particularly like it since the women were sitting way off to the side to observe the arc. At the Chabad House women were separated too but it felt like an equal partition rather than being relegated to the side and closed off. So for the last two years, I go to the Internet to hear the Kol Nidre melody. There are quite a few on YouTube.
Today I fasted all day. (I canceled my classes for today and gave the kids homework instead.) I stayed in bed most of the day with a book or computer since having my head on a pillow helped my headache and book and computer helped to pass the time quicker. Last year I didn’t fast because of all the health issues so I was actually glad to do it this year. I always feel like this day gives a new start. As soon as the fast ended at 7:23pm, I drank lots of water, ate dinner and later washed my hair. Now I feel all clean and ready to face the year.
While fasting and using Internet to distract myself (but not, I’m proud to say, turning to fanfic) I was meditating on how Hulu and Netflix and various other TV websites are changing TV viewing habits. I love not being bound to a TV schedule and having an ability to watch a show later or re-watch shows. On second viewing, for example, I liked “Dollhouse” first episode of season 2 more than the first time I saw it. This summer I saw all three seasons of “Veronica Mars” for free. I love having the ability to watch a whole season at once. And there are some shows I will watch now only online like “The Daily Show.” I love that show and I never seem to have time to watch it when it airs. Having it online helps. I can barely remember now having to tape TV shows to watch later.
( House S6E3 )
Just like many other things in Judaism I did not know about Yom Kippur until I came to America. And even then I did not care that much. Papa started fasting after a year or two after we got here, but it took me longer to pay attention. In fact, my first date, when I was fifteen, was on Yom Kippur. We went out for pizza. The day was convenient because all schools were closed. New York City has too many Jewish teachers and students to really be open on major Jewish holidays. I first attempted to fast in my senior year of high school when I was seventeen. I lasted until two in the afternoon, I think. (The fast is from sundown to sundown –twenty-five hours.) My first full fast was the following year, when I was eighteen and it was my freshman year of college. Because it was a university campus with one-third Jewish population, we had a day off, and there was an opportunity to go to services. That was the first time I went to evening Kol Nidre services. (And I think it was the first service I ever went to.) I never go on the actual day but I do like the evening services, it makes it all more solemn, kicks off the fast and I enjoy the melody of the prayers. Since then I have tried to observe the holiday every year. It is one of the few things I observe, like lighting Hanukah candles and keeping Passover. And all this is not really about God (I’m an atheist most of the time and agnostic occasionally), it is more about feeling connected with my heritage. Living on campus or close to campus whether as undergrad or in grad school always gave me an opportunity to go to evening services. I especially liked the Chabad House ones in grad school. But since I moved back home I haven’t really gone to an evening service. I went to a local synagogue two years ago but I didn’t particularly like it since the women were sitting way off to the side to observe the arc. At the Chabad House women were separated too but it felt like an equal partition rather than being relegated to the side and closed off. So for the last two years, I go to the Internet to hear the Kol Nidre melody. There are quite a few on YouTube.
Today I fasted all day. (I canceled my classes for today and gave the kids homework instead.) I stayed in bed most of the day with a book or computer since having my head on a pillow helped my headache and book and computer helped to pass the time quicker. Last year I didn’t fast because of all the health issues so I was actually glad to do it this year. I always feel like this day gives a new start. As soon as the fast ended at 7:23pm, I drank lots of water, ate dinner and later washed my hair. Now I feel all clean and ready to face the year.
While fasting and using Internet to distract myself (but not, I’m proud to say, turning to fanfic) I was meditating on how Hulu and Netflix and various other TV websites are changing TV viewing habits. I love not being bound to a TV schedule and having an ability to watch a show later or re-watch shows. On second viewing, for example, I liked “Dollhouse” first episode of season 2 more than the first time I saw it. This summer I saw all three seasons of “Veronica Mars” for free. I love having the ability to watch a whole season at once. And there are some shows I will watch now only online like “The Daily Show.” I love that show and I never seem to have time to watch it when it airs. Having it online helps. I can barely remember now having to tape TV shows to watch later.
( House S6E3 )
