PSALMS
165 - In the Sukkah
Building a sukkah was the first and biggest Jewish thing we consciously decided to do. Inspired by reading The First Jewish Catalog, my husband Reid designed a three-sided structure that hung, cantilevered, off the back of our house. It was a beauty, lashed together at the corners with the rope tricks he had learned as a Boy Scout, no metal except the two eyebolts that attached it to the house. I tied-dyed sheets for the walls (this was 1981) and carefully hand-lettered the required blessings to hang as placards.
Our sukkah has changed over the years (no more tie-dye!) and now I understand more about Sukkot. Erecting it, eating in it, waving lulav and acknowledging God all around us are cherished moments. How can sitting inside this fragile swaying structure with the billowing cloth walls be so peaceful? When the weather allows, I take my tea there and daven Shacharit. Friends visit and we just sit in the stillness, not needing to make small talk. The tradition of ushpizin – hospitality – invites visions of other welcoming: allowing God’s presence in our lives. Building a sukkah was a first step for me, a transformative step on my path to the Eternal.
One Hundred Sixty-Five
In the Sukkah
Sit beside me, Kind Visitor,
Between these billowing walls,
Broken light through roof branches:
Hold me in fall breezes.
I invite You, Kind Healer,
To sit in my sukkah,
To rest in my presence
As I recline against Yours.
I invite You to sweeten these days
With the etrog’s fragrance,
Tart and pleasing,
A boon to my weary senses.
I invite Your companions
Of hope and faith,
Healing and wishes,
Wholeness returned.
Allow my hospitality,
In this place of peace,
Where together we plan recovery,
Fragility turned to strength.