Sukkot and the Joys of Doing Without

In the coming days, neighborhoods that are home to Orthodox Jewish families are experiencing their annual eruption of ramshackle huts on lawns, balconies and back decks. The temporary edifices are where observant Jews will be taking their meals and enjoying life for the seven days of the holiday of Sukkot, which begins at sundown on Monday. The holiday's name is derived from the Hebrew word "Sukkah," or "covering," and refers to those huts, whose roofs, according to the Jewish religious tradition, must be made of any material that once grew from the ground.