Happy holidays!

Posted 8/21/12

No, it’s not a misprint. For many of us here in the Upper Delaware River region, the holiday season has commenced. Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) began at sundown this past Monday while Yom …

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Happy holidays!

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No, it’s not a misprint. For many of us here in the Upper Delaware River region, the holiday season has commenced. Rosh Hashanah (the Jewish New Year) began at sundown this past Monday while Yom Kippur (the Day of Atonement) still lies ahead. Hallmark opportunities notwithstanding, the Jewish holidays are always celebrated on the same day of the Hebrew calendar and each “day” begins and ends with sunset, rather than at midnight. Tradition informs us that following Rosh Hashanah, 10 days of repentance unfold and during this period, God opens “the book of judgment” (uh oh) on each individual and all of mankind. With judgment pending, prayers and repentance are required before the book is sealed on Yom Kippur, when we are (thankfully) given a clean slate.

As a young man, I thoughtfully studied the holidays, and some of what I learned has stuck. For instance, the New Year encompasses the Hebrew words “Yom Teruah,” which translate as “the day of shouting and raising a noise” (which could have applied to any day of the year in my house), and since the holidays traditionally follow the seasons, apples dipped in honey are symbolic of wishes for a “sweet new year.” Additionally, the New Year is the “beginning of the cycle of sowing, growth and harvest, the latter marked by a set of major agricultural festivals” (www.wikipedia.com), many of which are yet to come right here in the country.

It’s unclear to me what the word “fest” is in Hebrew, or until very recently, whether or not it is actually a word, but www.freedictionary.com assures me that it is, and defines “fest” as “a gathering or occasion characterized by a specific activity, often used in combination,” like music-fest, chili-fest, harvest-fest, river-fest… well, you get the idea. Much to my constant delight, we are pretty fest-centric (probably not a word) here in the Catskills, and while some have come and gone, there are several occurring now or just on the festival horizon. Although the name has been changed (to protect the innocent?), “Jeff Jamboree” will always be “Jeff Fest” to me, and the Wonder Dog and I hightailed it over to Main Street in Jeffersonville, NY last weekend (before the atoning began) to take part in the tractor parade, pie contests, corn husking, entertainment and of course the traditional duck race, which draws a huge crowd of onlookers encouraging the kids herding the ducks through Callicoon Creek, culminating in prizes for first, last and (literally) everything in between.

I’ve yet to swing by the six-week-long Harvest Festival in Bethel, NY (www.bethelwoodscenter.org), but it’s on my list, along with the triumphant return of “Pumpkin Fest” (www.barryvilleny.com) and our own calendar of events (www.riverreporter.com/where-when) is bursting with opportunities to be festive about everything from wine (in my case, whine) to chili to beer. And this week’s Upper Delaware Magazine insert has an extensive insert of activities and fests from fall into winter. Before more festivities begin, however, I’m reminded that (for the next few days anyhow) the mood in my Jewish household has been reserved for solemnity, contemplation and deep thought, which some would argue is not exactly in my wheelhouse, but once a year or so, I give it a whirl.

While resolutions are not really cited as part of my religious observance, I make them in my head anyhow, and am grateful for the opportunity that the Jewish calendar allows: specifically that any transgressions I might have made are “wiped clean” and I get a fresh start, usually when I need it most. I’m pretty sure that I’ve made more than a few poor choices in my day-to-day during the last year, and if any of those choices have affected you personally, I’m issuing a blanket apology here and now (see how easy that was?), since another cycle is about to close and I’m ready to get a free ride (at least from my warped point of view).

For a myriad of reasons, autumn is my favorite time of year and while it is fleeting, I plan on celebrating throughout the region with friends, neighbors and loved ones, reminded that time “waits for no one” and that without (oy) winter, spring would not smell as sweet.

My tribute to seasonal change is about to debut this Friday night (www.forest burghtavern.com) in the form of a photo exhibit, and I’m grateful to have the opportunity for the show to benefit Dharma’s four-legged friends at Catskill Animal Rescue (CARe) of Sullivan County, while simultaneously, I prepare to snap pictures of our fantastic fall foliage that is being hinted at as I write (see also page 19). Who knows? Maybe by this weekend my new website (www.jonathancharlesfox.com) will be up and running, but I wouldn’t count on it, since I’m pretty busy ringing in the New Year.

Do you have a festival we need to know about? Send your announcements to copyeditor@riverreporter.com and we will share the news with the 60 communities that Dharma and I traverse on behalf of The River Reporter. Happy Holidays!

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