Gratitude. Thanksgiving. Deep gratitude and thankfulness expresses itself with a need to return the favor and pay it forward. It also makes us happier with our lives.

It's been a week. A painful, difficult week. An uplifting, marvelous week. I've moved some major projects along, like the curriculum for a course on kashrut that I'll be offering to congregants and those who want to become kosher supervisors for our kehillah (community), beginning in early 2017, and our in-house conversion course that Rabbi Posen and I will facilitate come February.

Does anyone remember the book "Blue Highways: A Journey into America?" It was written by William Least Heat-Moon. As I recall, he was a divorced Native American English professor who converted an old panel van into a makeshift home, then traveled the small back road "blue highways" of America.

It is my fervent hope that all who are able to vote do so, in every corner of this country. May the votes be cast fairly, and may we suffer no more than the normal margin of error as the votes are counted. Most importantly, may we all find ways to heal the divisiveness that defines our country by seeking justice and equity for all, yes, and by working on how we respond to those who have very different perspectives.

It's 10:40 p.m. on Thursday, and I'm reflecting on another typical day. I had an early morning meeting with a congregant, then headed over to Federation at 9:00 to meet with Israel's Consul General to the Pacific Northwest, Dr. Andy David. Dr. David is an impressive man of intelligence and candor.

Have you caught your breath yet? Rosh Hashanah, Yom Kippur, Sukkot and regular life. There's something so exhilarating--and exhausting--about the Jewish autumn holiday cycle. As the end approaches, with Shimini Atzeret and Simchat Torah just around the corner, I want to alert you to a few upcoming events.