As Rosh Hashanah arrives and so many emotions billow around me, especially in this time of war, there is one overwhelming sentiment: gratitude. Here I stand, on the cusp of 5785 and I know one thing: For 5784, I was privileged to be written into the Book of Life.
So many were not. First and foremost in my mind are the over 1,650 Israeli and non-Israeli civilians murdered on Oct. 7 and the IDF soldiers killed in battle since.
• • •
As I stand on the cusp of 5785, looking to Yom Kippur, I have one overwhelming prayer: May the remaining hostages in Gaza be written and sealed into the Book of Life.
I think especially of Tal Shoham, a very distant relative through marriage, who for a year has been in Gaza, in tunnels with little food and water, no sunshine. May he not only be sealed into the Book of Life, but reunited with his children and his wife — former Hamas captives who were exchanged in November, 2023.
• • •
A massive loss in the arts world was the venerable Maggie Smith, one of the grande dames of British film, who died Sept. 27. What a talent! She embodied stage presence. Her distinct voice and posture exuded the sense of her characters, drawing the performer to whatever character she was playing — and her characters were often complex. But she imbued them with very real human fallibility and emotion, making odious or even reprehensible characters sympathetic.
Indeed, she plays a true anti-hero in the first role I saw her in — “The Prime of Miss Jean Brodie” — and an ornery control freak in the other — “A Room With a View.” Both, to this day, remain films I watch time and again, and both led me to two of my now favorite authors, Muriel Spark and EM Forster.
Because of Jean Brodie, Scotland was the first foreign country I visited, which in turn led me to spend my junior year there.
Fortunately, Smith leaves behind a legacy of performances for us to continue to savor.
Shana Goldberg may be reached at shana@ijn.com
© IJN 2024
