Random-osity: Rosh Hashana Tidbits

This is the new year A new beginning...

Let’s make a promise We’ll be the brightest...

{The Maccabeats -- This is the New Year}

Customs are a big part of Jewish celebrations.
Rosh Hashana has many special traditions that in some ways are the backbone of the holiday.

We dip apples in honey to symbolize having a sweet new year.
It's become a family tradition to find new and different honey to taste.
This year's selection is a variety of amazing kinds of honey like mimosa, macadamia, and orange blossom.

We are supposed to try a new fruit to symbolize the newness of the new year.
We can then make a special blessing thanking God for a new experience.
This year we had some tiger figs, rambutans, and orange melon!

Pomegranates are said to have 613 seeds, the number of commandments in the Torah.
Eating them on Rosh Hashana is said to symbolize the desire to have that many blessings and possibilities in our lives this year.

There are so many other customs and practices that make Rosh Hashana so special. The traditions and practices are truly what make holidays so special to me. They enrich our celebration and bring Jews together around the world and across denominations.