**Shana Tova – Good Year - שנה טובה**

Rosh HaShana = the Jewish New Year
Rosh mean "head"
HaShana means "the year" (Ha = the)

Rosh HaShana - the first two days of the month of Tishrei (September/October) per the Hebrew calendar, is when we celebrate the Jewish New Year. Unlike the calendar we are all used to - the Jewish calendar changes every year so for every holiday it's going to fall on a different day (sometimes even different months !! ) In the seventh month (again, Jewish calendar), on the first day of the month, there is a memorial of blowing the horn, a holy gathering.. Thus the Shofar is the main symbol of the holiday of Rosh Hashanah (as well as Yom Kippur which follows 10 days after Rosh HaShana)

Rosh HaShana is said to be the beginning of the universe - the day that G*d created Adam * Eve . In the Jewish religion our holidays always start the evening before. So this year Rosh HaShana will begin at sundown on Sept 20 and end at sundown on Sept 22. Both holidays are days of prayer - which, when I was growing up, those 3 days (2 for Rosh HaShana and 1 for Yom Kippur) I did not go to school but we went to schul (synagogue / temple). I can still remember sitting there listening and watching not only the Rabbi up front reading from the Torah in a language I didn't quite understand (at that point anyway - I did later on esp when I traveled over to Israel ) Hearing the Shofar sound was/is AWESOME !! There truly is no other sound that can hit home (so to speak - at least for me)

For Rosh HaShana I will be making challah (the ch is indeed heard as it comes from your throat) - but instead of baking it as a long loaf, it is baked in a round shape (there are quite a few interpretations as to why the challah is baked in a round shape for our high holiday - one of which it is for eternal life ,,, also did you know that challah is braided with 6 strands of dough ? It is said that it is because there are 6 days prior to Shabbat (works for me !! ) Also being the "New Year" most challahs are baked for this specific holiday with raisins (yes my challah will also have raisins, white raisins). The adding of the raisins is for a "sweet" year.

Also for a sweet year at some (possibly most) tables there will be cut up apples and bowls of honey to dip the apples in - again, for a sweet year. As our main meal I always make a prune tzimmes (which is mainly just a sweetened version of a stew) - mine includes, carrots, orange juice, prunes, sweet potatoes, white potatoes and beef. My mother also had chicken in hers - who knows, I just may add that this year :)

Usually to end such a perfect meal we would have honey cake (mom's was THE BEST) so hopefully mine will compare with hers (if only just a little bit.)