Today is a milestone, for two reasons:

1. It’s the Jewish New Year – Rosh Hashanah
2. This is my 30th post to O-HI-30!

Although I’m far from whom one would consider a religious Jew (I almost forgot about the High Holy Days entirely and certainly don’t attend services), there is something about Rosh Hashanah that speaks to me. For those of you who know even less about Judaism than I do, Rosh Hashanah is the Jewish New Year.  I’m not going to make this a religious school lesson (those years of Sunday School didn’t really pay off), but essentially Rosh Hashanah is considered the “day of judgement”, and ten days later, Yom Kippur follows as the “day of atonement”.  The ten days between the Holidays are an opportunity for Jews to repent.  It’s common to wish someone a “good and sweet new year”, and the Holiday is commonly celebrated with apples and honey, which I had at my desk today and shared with co-workers:

Fall is my favorite season.  Warm, sunny days, cool and crisp nights that require an extra blanket, leaves changing colors, boots and layers (fall clothes are the best!), football – the list goes on.  To me, this time of year means change to me more than any other time of year.  Sure, I have a champagne toast on December 31st and make resolutions on January 1st, but I never really feel like it’s truly a “new year” in the dead of winter. The fall, on the other hand, feels like a new beginning – and Rosh Hashanah makes it official.

In addition to the new year, this is also my 30th post on O-HI-30!  It feels like I’ve reached a major milestone.  And because I’m a good Jewish girl at heart, I’ve been thinking about my life over the past year.  More specifically, I’ve been thinking about my life since I started this blog 30 posts ago – and why I started O-HI-30 in the first place:

“In writing this blog, I hope to fully appreciate all of life’s adventures – and maybe inspire you to do the same!”

While I try to live this mission each and every day, I’d be lying if I said it was easy.  On the contrary, it’s pretty dang hard sometimes.  When life doesn’t go our way, it’s all to easy to focus on the parts that feel less than good.  We can get so wrapped up in whatever is bothering us that we fail to recognize all of the other parts of life that are still good, still enjoyable.  Add to that the high expectations we have for ourselves – and others – and it’s no wonder that we can become consumed with whatever we perceive to be missing from our lives.

Despite my desire to never feel this way, I’m human, and it’s only natural that us humans get down sometimes.  When I start to feel these negative thoughts of self-pity and self-doubt creep in, I find that it’s most helpful to recognize them rather than try to ignore them.  Because once I’ve acknowledged those negative thoughts, I can begin to let them go.

So as I embark on this New Year and 30th post, I’m reminded of what the O-HI-30 life is all about.  Recognizing that while we may not have everything that we desire, our lives are enriched by everything and everyone that is in them today.  Sure, that doesn’t mean that we shouldn’t aspire for more, but let’s not let the things that are missing overtake all of the wonderful things that are here and now.  Fall is a new beginning (even if you’re not a Jew!), and an opportunity to view life in a new, refreshing way.

L’Shanah Tovah!  Happy New Year, everyone, and thank you for reading O-HI-30!