5 AM: This is Russo.

Apparently he’s been sleeping in front of the Shell station on the Lynnway just minutes from our home for about two years now. After I purchased a bag filled with very non kosher food, and those beef sticks (I have wanted to buy one of those since I can remember, but never did. I guess some childhood dreams do eventually come true, although clearly not always in the ways we imagine)- I approached him softly so as not to startle him. I wasn’t sure if he was sleeping or not. His fingers were clutching the trigger of his large water gun rifle, signaling his intentions; he was prepared to valiantly defend the sum total of his life’s possessions piled high on the shopping cart parked at his feet. “Good morning Russo I have some hot coffee and breakfast for you” I said. He looked up at me with graciousness and said “thank you father thank you father.”

Tonite we celebrate our Jewish new year and pray to G-d, our Father in heaven, asking him to grant us a year filled with prosperity, health, Joy, and success. Tonite we set out on the path of Teshuva, endeavoring to renew the vows we exchanged with G-d, with Sinai looming over us as our Chupah canopy.

As I reflect on that wedding, I realize that Russo is the glass that has just been broken under my foot. A reminder of the ways that our prayerful rejoicing, resonating with gratitude for the abundance of blessings we already have, are incomplete as long as a man lies homeless, hungry, and cold just three blocks from the warmth and safety of our homes. Most importantly, he reminded me, that our father in heaven, is not just our father, he’s Russo’s father as well. AVINU MAlKAYNU….ASAY EEMANU TZEDAKAH VACHESED VEHOSHEEAAYNU …

Much Love

Rabbi Yossi