Usually, before the holidays, I take the opportunity to remind the readers about their commitment to G-D and the necessity of forging and maintaining a strong relationship with their Creator. This Rosh Hashanah, however, I would like to focus on a different aspect of self-improvement - the relationship people have with their family and friends.

Rosh Hashanah, in and of itself, is a holiday where we direct our gazes heavenward and ponder what we could have improved upon in terms of heavenly devotion.  But if you carefully peruse the ‘al chait’ section, where we delineate all our sins, you will notice that many of the passages correspond to the trespasses we commit against our fellow man.

Solitude is advocated by many of our great Chassidic Sages for providing us with the space and time to determine where we’ve been and where we’re going. But too much time and attention to self can lead to self-absorption, and self-care can become an obsession. When we broaden our horizons and look beyond ourselves to see what others need, to establish a fellowship in which doing for others is the infrastructure, then we exalt ourselves from the mundane to the spectacular.

Living for oneself is surviving, but living not for others but to do for others is thriving. G-D, of course, wants us to be the best we can be - physically, mentally, emotionally and, naturally, spiritually. This demands widening our scope, re-glazing the one-way mirror to include those we love and who are within our sphere of influence.

This holiday, think of what you can do to make it more enjoyable and meaningful for your fellow men and women. And may your good wishes and efforts for them yield many blessings for you and all Israel in return.

Rosh Hashanah 5764 | Back to Rabbi's Messages