Holidays in Cheshvan
After an action-packed Tishrei, Cheshvan is a month to quietly observe the changing trees around us and focus on new routines or habits for ourselves.
This is our time to let everything that came up during Elul and the Days of Awe soak in. If we used the High Holidays to reflect on the past year, we use the month of Cheshvan to make those changes a reality by setting up new habits and routines, putting all that reflection to good use Cheshvan is when we notice that colder weather and darker days are coming. Naturally, this is a time when people turn inward. This is also the time when in ancient Israel the rains began to come, a sign of prosperity and hope. Cheshvan and its relative quiet serve as the perfect backdrop for harvesting our gleanings into tangible goals Bounty is coming, even during this quiet time, even if we don’t know what form it will take.
GREGORIAN DATES: Sundown on Wednesday, October 22 through sundown on Thursday, November 20
Tablescape
ETHIOPIA
Sigd: Sunset on Wednesday, November 19 through nightfall on Thursday, November 20
Fifty days after Yom Kippur, Sigd is celebrated by the Beta Israel community from Ethiopia with a day of fasting that commemorates the receiving of the Torah (similar to Shavuot, which occurs fifty days after Passover). Before the majority of the Ethiopian Jewish community made aliyah (moved and became a citizen of Israel), this holiday was also a time when the community prayed for return from exile In 2008, the State of Israel recognized Sigd as an official holiday.
Try decor that includes flowers or tea lights floating in bowls of water During Cheshvan, we aspire to be like water lilies, floating atop the surface rolling with the waves, allowing the water to buoy us up.
Inviting everyone to light a set of candles so your home is filled with candlelight You could also opt out of overhead lights or lamps and light your dinner entirely by candlelight.
Sigd is known for its colorful umbrellas, consider breaking out cocktail umbrellas for your guests' drinks and a colorful, festive tablecloth and napkins for the table
Cheshvan is sometimes known as “the bitter month” because its a month without a widely celebrated holiday, consider serving some bitter foods such as an endive salad, sautéed rapini roasted brussel sprouts, or a dark chocolate dessert
Preparing an intention setting activity for 5786 or have your guests share any intentions that they set over the High Holidays.
Consider creating a "dinner in the dark" blindfolded experience to fully embrace the changing of the seasons These dinners encourage you to lean into your other senses by eating and experiencing the meal while blindfolded.
Feature some high-low pairings at your table to represent the balance of the elevated time of the High Holidays with the "regular" time of this Hebrew month. Options might include: preparing a full tablescape of knick knacks, soda in champagne glasses, fast food on your nicest dishware, fancy hot dogs, etc
In honor of Sigd, feature a Shabbat meal of Ethiopian cuisine.
Cheshvan is an opportunity to lean into routine after the craziness of the High Holidays. Consider discussing around your Shabbat table:
What’s a routine you couldn’t live without? Are there any new routines you want to incorporate?
How do you distinguish between a routine and a ritual?