This Wednesday is Rosh Hashanah, also known as The Jewish New Year. For me as for many others,  it begins a time of reflection and renewal and allows me to look more deeply within to see where I am needing to re-align. The word that is used to describe one intention is ‘t’shuvah‘.  By definition, it means ‘returning’. I like to think of it as turning over a new leaf, partly to see what lies beneath it as well as to experience a do-over. As I consider my life in the past 5 1/2 decades, I am amazed at the adventures in which I have engaged and the stalwart companions who have joined me for the ride. I am also in awe of the beautiful re-awakening that comes when I tune in to the messages from Spirit. Many’s the time when I have felt discouraged, wondering why events took the turns that they did, only to discover a grander plan than I had in mind. It has me constantly questioning if some things are beshert; Hebrew for meant to be or if they are random, like the feather floating on the breeze in the movie Forrest Gump. The reality is that it doesn’t  matter, since life unfolds in our favor, regardless of appearance. I muse about the idea of soul contracts which means that before we set our little baby bottoms on the planet, we made an agreement to engage in certain experiences with various players. Sometimes we are puzzled about the rules of the game since they seem to change without notice. Nothing makes sense at those time, and I am reminded of something a friend told me “Don’t judge your life by how you feel in this moment.”

There are also times when I have (in 12 step parlance) made ” a searching and fearless moral inventory”, taking a look at choices I have made and actions I have either taken or failed to take. Those are often the most humbling as I wish I had made other decisions, but also am assured that had I taken a different route, I might not have met those who I hold dear now, or have engaged in learning experiences that have made me stronger or more resilient.

Turning and re-turning ~

http://youtu.be/sU4ZDqJrRgU Return Again by Neshama Carlebach