By Robin Kurss

How can it already be the middle of September? It seems like I wake up on Monday and it’s Friday already! Our days turn to weeks and then we suddenly find ourselves preparing for another Jewish New Year.

This week’s Torah portion is Ki Teitzei. Read during the middle of the Hebrew month of Elul, it ushers in the holidays of Rosh Hashanah and Yom Kippur. This section of Torah is notable as it contains more mitzvot (commandments or proscribed good deeds) than any other portion during the year. There are instructions on such wide-ranging topics as: inheritance rights, dealing with rebellious children, prohibitions about dress, how to deal with lost property, maintaining family purity, divorce, protection of the vulnerable, taking care of animals and how to properly harvest the fields. These instructions and laws cover a wide range of ethical, social, and religious issues; they emphasize justice, compassion, and the importance of treating all with dignity and respect.

Elul is a time of reflection and introspection. We ponder our past year, both our intentions and our actions and how we might repent for having gone astray. Our goal is to self-improve. Ki Teitzei further helps us in that one of its major messages is to reflect on how we live in the world. As Moses prepares the Children of Israel to enter the Promised Land, he reiterates some of these commandments, thus reaffirming their covenant with G-d, to provide the framework for life in their new home, and to setting them on the right path for their future.

This month’s journey is not dissimilar to the one that individuals 55+ traverse. It is called Midlife Transition.  I have the privilege of working with the Buffalo Jewish Federation’s new Midlife Engagement Initiative. This September, a cohort of 55+ individuals will begin The Next Adventure, a yearlong exploration of our lives, at the entrance to a different Promised Land. We will look at our potential to repurpose our lives from doing to being – to becoming the best versions of ourselves. Just as the Mitzvot in Ki Teitzei guided us thousands of years ago, this experience will lead us to finding deeper meaning and renewed purpose in our lives: to use our talents, life experience and wisdom to give back to ourselves, our families, and our community to make the world a better place.

Robin Kurss is Director of Jewish Experience for the Buffalo Jewish Federation.