The Rosh Chodesh Stitch Circle is a women's group that celebrates the
New Moon through stitching and meets as close to Rosh Chodesh as
possible (the head of the Jewish
month).
It is traditional for women to get together on Rosh Chodesh,
welcome
in the new month, and limit their labor tasks in honor of the day.
Our circle will usually
light a candle for the month, listen to a new Jewish artist on CD,
bond, have a sweet nosh, read some tekinnes (ancient women's
prayers)
and stitch with purpose. You don't have to know how to stitch if you
wish to participate - we can teach you!
However, the goal is to stitch as a group. You can bring your own
crochet, knitting, sewing, or quilting projects. If you don't have
any projects in progress, you can participate in this year's double
"stitch-vah": making blankets (from felting and cutting old wool
sweaters) to donate on a regular basis to programs that support the
homeless. Also, we will have felted wool sweaters for the purpose of
making chic felted bags to raise money for S.M.I.L.E. , the tzedakah
project of Achot. See umjc.net/achot for more details on
S.M.I.L.E.
Check the Events Calendar for dates and times and plan ahead for Rosh
Chodesh. This day is a beautiful day for women to rejoice in the cycle
of the moon and the passing of Jewish time. Come and be a part - this
day is for you!
Teach us to number our days,
Then we shall gain a heart of wisdom. Tehillim 90:12
G-d of life, who regulates the course of time,
You have divided it into great and small periods,
Into years, months, and days.
These passages teach us how time rushes by
In swift, uninterrupted flight
And with every onward movement carries us nearer
To the end of all earthly existence - into eternity -
And that fleeting time, once gone,
Will never reverse its course
Despite all our wishes and ardent desires for its return.
Therefore we must use it
As long as we can still call it ours
And waste not even the least bit of it --
Lose no hours by useless deed or practice,
For you, O G-d, will on some future day,
Call us to account for how we spent our lives.
We must carry out our works and complete them
As time lays them out before us.
If we contemplate them too much and hesitate,
Then the stream of time tugs them past us,
And all that remains are empty hindsight and regret.
Whatever we begin and undertake,
Whatever we struggle with and strive for --
May they be healing and G-d-pleasing works,
Expressing our highest convictions on earth,
Worthy of beings who were made in the image of G-d.
Therefore, O Heavenly Protector, I pray to you
For understanding and wisdom that I may use my time
In ways that are a blessing to me, to my loved ones,
And to my fellow human beings --
That I may use every hour, every moment of my life,
In wise action and effort, in valuable work and study,
For the ennoblement of my heart, for the preparation
And cultivation of my soul -- for eternity.
O Compassionate One, who has always guided and shielded me,
Continue to grant Your gracious protection to me and my loved ones.
May the coming month be a month of peace and joy for us.
Preserve our health and lives,
Soften and lighten our grief,
Increase our pleasure in life,
Bless the works of our hands,
And grant us, in the fullness of your grace,
All that we may need
And all thay may be good for us. Amen.
An excerpt taken from Hours of Devotion - Fanny Neuda's Book of Prayers for Jewish Women by Dinah Berland, pg. 59 - On the New Moon, Schocken Books
