Happy Doesn’t Equal Good
Not all of you may know that this is my second year of teaching Hebrew to the older students at our religious school. Teaching is such a wonderful way to notice new aspects of something you’ve been doing forever. And here is the story….
We were learning about the use of “Tov”, meaning “good”, in greetings in Hebrew: Good Afternoon, Good Morning, and A Good Year. Wait a minute…don’t we say “Happy New Year” in English? Thereupon a discussion ensued with the 4th, 5th and 6th graders. One 4th grader was very adamant that “happy” was not the right word. Weren’t other issues more important in our lives, we came to wonder? Health, enough money to be secure, love, family, friends….many things that help us live a good and caring life. So we learned not only about a Hebrew word, but about Jewish culture and its values all stemming from the idea of what “good” means.
What a perfect way to begin the new year! Thinking about what is important to us and what we consider “good”. Didn’t God create the world with an idea of “good”, using that expression in reflecting on the work of each day of creation? During Rosh HaShana and Yom Kippur we have time to reflect on how we can be part of the good in the world as we try to improve our ways in the new year ahead.
Wishing each of you Goodness and Sweetness in the New Year.
– Hana