The ten days from Rosh Hashanah to Yom Kippur commemorate the Creation of the universe and the creation of mankind.  Rosh Hashanah is called the Day of Judgment, reminding us that all our actions matter, whether great or small, whether public or private.

By contemplating that we will have to make an accounting before the One Judge, we become more aware of our own choices, more cautious in how we judge others, and more willing to rethink the many ideas and attitudes we take for granted.

Ultimately, we want to be the best people we can be, which means looking back on the past year to evaluate how we’ve succeeded and how we have fallen short.  It also means looking forward to envision where we would like to see ourselves this time next year, and then setting the bar a little higher, knowing that we will always fall short of our goals.

Change isn’t easy.  But it is inevitable, for better or for worse.

And it’s in our hands to see that we change for the better.