Message from the Editor September 2022
Written by Penina Taylor
Birthdays. Anniversaries. Rosh Hashanah. As time-bound beings we mark our lives by the yearly cycle of the sun. Even Judaism, which counts time by the moon, reconciles our calendar to the sun every few years. This year, September brings two anniversaries, and my Hebrew birthday, as well as the New Year, so I’ve got a lot to think about. Yes, plans for the future, but also so much to be grateful for.
This year, September marks the one year anniversary of UNORTHOBOXED, and what a year it’s been! We’ve made history by creating a Jewish publication that showed pictures of women, talked about important topics often deemed unmentionable and attempted to be inclusive and relevant without being political or preachy. And while we’ve definitely made a few errors in judgment, and there’s certainly room for improvement, I think we’ve accomplished this herculean task quite admirably.
So what does the future hold for UNORTHOBOXED? Well, we are forging ahead with our podcast and our store (if you haven’t seen either one of them, you’ve got to check them out!). But we also have plans to have articles covering a few new areas, including a home styling column and, of course, we hope to be able to go to print some time this year.
And speaking of going to print, I would be remiss if I didn’t express our gratitude for our members who support us each
month because they believe in our mission – without you we couldn’t continue! If you are not yet a member, please consider supporting us, you do get a few exclusive benefits, but you also get the satisfaction of knowing that you are enabling us to continue to produce such a needed publication.
My birthday is on Rosh Hashanah. Birthdays have always been important to me because they are the annual reminder that I was created for a purpose, that God believed the world needed me in it, that without me the world would be missing something. And according to Judaism, on your birthday you are imbued with a special power, which is why it is the Jewish custom for a person to bless others on their birthday. And so on this very special edition of UNORTHOBOXED – our birthday, my birthday and the birthday of the world, I would like to bless each and every one of us with a year of love, joy and peace. Shana Tova.
