I can’t wait for Sukkot.” An expression of anticipatory excitement coming from a fellow member of my temple? Our rabbi? My Orthodox cousins? It was the 13-year-old son of our non-Jewish neighbors. And another piece of evidence of a remarkable phenomenon our family has discovered about the holiday: That it is magic.
No, it’s not a High Holiday. Yes, it comes so hard on the heels of Yom Kippur that you’ve barely digested your break-fast before you have to start eating festive meals again. And yes, those of us who grew up in less observant or secular households may find the notion of building a sukkah intimidating and strange.
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