This week our family began celebrating the holiday of Sukkot. It is a Jewish holiday that commemorates the period when the Israelites wandered through the desert after they were freed from slavery. A Sukkah is also the name given to the huts in which Jews dwelled during the time of the harvest.
We build our Sukkah and decorate it with pictures that Yale and Serena drew when they were young as well as decorative fruits and vegetables that symbolize the harvest and officially welcome autumn, my favorite time of year. We always invite guests to dine in our Sukkah, and we are invited to dine in other Sukkot as well.
Growing up in Winnipeg, we never built a Sukkah, mostly because the holiday arrives when the temperatures at night dip into a very chilly thirty degrees, not particularly conducive to a comfortable dining experience! Observant Jews will brave the cold and will also sleep in the Sukkah as well.
The roof of the Sukkah is also temporary and is supposed to let some light through. We like to use palm fronds to give it a more natural feel.
