Tonight begins Yom Kippur, also known as the Day of Atonement, the holiest day of the year. Yom Kippur is a time for fasting, prayer, reflection, and repentance.

On Yom Kippur, more Jews pack the auditorium than any other time of the year, in fact, extra chairs are needed to accommodate the larger than usual crowds. Why? Is it because we have committed so many sins and need God’s forgiveness? Or because our Jewish guilt forces us to show up at temple least once a year (when actually joyous celebrations happen throughout the calendar)? Or is it because we want to see our friends and show off our new outfits? Or perhaps spending time in temple distracts us from our hunger pangs before we get to finally go home and break the fast with blintzes and bagels with creamed cheese.

While Yom Kippur is considered a solemn time with deep, genuine prayers, this high holiday is also the happiest day of the year. Think about it—Yom Kippur is all about opportunities and hitting the restart button, physically and spiritually. Through fasting, Yom Kippur is a time to detox (way before the body cleanse became a health trend), and it is a time to let go of baggage that has been weighing us down the previous year. Yom Kippur is a time to bow our heads in prayer, yes, but not hang our heads low because of past mistakes, failures, and shortcomings. Yom Kippur is a time to return to God who loves us no matter what and is pleased that we showed up, whether in a house of worship or in the apple orchard, or in our own minds.

If we are sincere in how we approach Yom Kippur, with an open mind, heart, and soul, willing to let go of the burdens that bring us down, forge ahead with a renewed sense of purpose, then Yom Kippur is a time to rejoice and begin a new year with a clean slate, a fresh start.

G’mar Hatima Tova, “May you be sealed in the Book of Life” for goodness, kindness, happiness, health and prosperity.