Another Yom Kippur is here. The day of Atonement.

In other words… the one day a year when the Jews hang out in Temple and tell God they are sorry for all the bad things they did during the past year.

Done. Over. We are then sent out into the world to make the same mistakes again. It’s okay. We can atone for it next year.

Sounds like a plan.

Except it isn’t.

Wouldn’t it be great if we could all walk into Temple and tell God we have nothing to atone for? Wouldn’t it be great if none of us spoke bad about anyone, didn’t bully anyone, never yelled, coveted, stole, envied, ate too much, drank too much, took God’s name in vain? Sure, it would be awesome. But it’s not reality.

We wouldn’t be human if we had no faults. And this wouldn’t be the world it is. We aren’t cookie cutter cutouts of each other. We don’t live in Stepford (although Santa Clarita comes pretty close). We are a society where we embrace our differences. With differences comes all that good (bad) stuff: bullying, yelling, coveting, stealing, envy, gluttony. Doesn’t make it right… it just is what it is.

So yes, I will be attending Temple this Yom Kippur and I will be atoning for my sins over the past year. And while I can’t say I won’t make the same mistakes… I will try my best to be better. To live better. To maybe have a few less sins to atone for next year. It’s the best I can do. It’s the best anyone can do.