The holiday season is upon us in Israel! So far, during my time here, we've had holiday after holiday. We haven't officially started classes because of this!
I learned about the seven day holiday of Sukkot, which is a traditional harvest festival. Jews celebrate it by building a sukkah, similar to a tent made up of at least three walls and a roof of unprocessed natural vegetation. They build it outside, and for seven days and nights, they eat there and regard it as their home. The goal is to spend as much time as possible in the sukkah. Some people even sleep in it.
Sukkot is important because it commemorates the years that the Jews spent in the desert on their way to the Promised Land and celebrates the way in which they believe God protected them under difficult desert conditions.
This holiday connects to Israel's environment because it celebrates the gathering of the harvest. Crops grow in the winter and are ready for harvest in the late spring, but some of them remain out in the field to dry for a few months and are only ready for harvest in the early fall. Sukkot is a time to express appreciation for this bounty.
